A New Way to Play
by soundless steps
Summary: This is a Gamer/Worm fanfic where Taylor has the gamer power. Seeing that school held nothing for her right after waking up from a coma, Taylor decides that the time she would spend at school is better spent exploring her new power.
1. Chapter 1

_**Yay. Another gamer/worm fic. Don't expect too much from this since I'm just using it to kill some boredom, but a co-writer could go a long way, especially when it comes to names. (I get writer's block over names a lot.) The gaming system won't be too different from the original concept, but I made some changes to make every stat seem useful without being out of place when applying them to a real person. Enjoy.**_

 _ **PS: Here's her starting stats.**_

 **Status**

 **The Gamer**

 **Name:** Taylor Anne Hebert

 **Title:** N/A

 **LV:** 1 (Next LV: 0/100)

 **HP:** 70/70 (REGN: 4/min.)

 **MP:** 200/200 (REGN: 9/min.)

 **VIGR:** 2

 **ENDR:** 3

 **DEXT:** 6

 **INTL:** 15

 **WSDM:** 8

 **INTU:** 6

 **Unspent Points:** 0

 ****ANWtP****

BEEP

I opened my eyes suddenly as a loud familiar sound registered to my ears. My memories were foggy, and I made no effort to restore them.

BEEP

My vision cleared up quickly, but it wasn't all that great without my glasses.

 **You have slept in a bed. 100% HP and MP recovered.**

 **You have received professional medical care. X2-HP-REGN for the next 24 hours.**

That's why the crystal clear floating text within blue boxes stood out to me even more than it should have.

BEEP

A sense of panic rose from my chest, strangling my trachea and threatening to come out as a high scream. Just as I opened my mouth, the feeling fizzled out into nothing, as if it was nothing more than a figment of my imagination. I knew that it wasn't normal to shrug something like that off like it was nothing, but I was glad I had.

BEEP

That left taking in the screens floating before my eyes. Nothing was different except for noticing a small x at the upper right corner of each text box. (Because what else could I call them?) Compelled by my modern instincts, I reached out to the X on the lower screen and tapped it.

BEEP

I flinched away due to the synchronized tactile, visual, and auditory surprises. As expected, the lower text box disappeared, leaving the one about HP and MP. It reminded me a lot of a video game, which I only knew about through Uber and Leet's antics. My family lacked the funds and I lacked the inclination towards them.

BEEP

I knew HP stood for health and MP stood for mana points, but that was the extent of my knowledge. I already felt regret for getting rid of the other text box since I could have learned a little more from it, and I didn't take the time to memorize its contents. I decided to get rid of the other one.

BEEP

That left taking in my surroundings. Obviously I was in a small hospital room with one other person on a bed hidden by an opaque tan curtain. The walls were an aqua green while the ceiling and floor were off-white. The sheets were pure white, better for showing off any surprise blood stains. There was a nightstand to my left where I found my glasses. I put them on.

BEEP

Finally I sat up and looked at all the wires and tubes connected to me. I knew that ripping them out was the last thing my caretakers wanted, so I searched for the call nurse button instead.

BEEP beep

I waited through the onslaught of beeps until finally, a larger woman walked into the room. She wore simple nurses' scrubs that stood out against her dark skin. "Hello child. How are you feeling? You've been out for a while."

Her tone was steeped in motherly care that put what little turmoil remaining in my mind to rest. "How long?" I wanted to know as soon as possible so I wouldn't get blindsided.

BEEP

"You were out for nearly a week, five days to be exact."

Just like before, the panic built up then fizzled out without getting anywhere. I decided to give her my full attention and went into full open mouth shock at what was floating over her head.

BEEP

 _Nurse_

 _LV: 3 Laura Moores_

Just like with my panic, it faded, but the damage was already done. "Now I know that's a shock, but I promise that it's not so bad. Most comas last for weeks."

It was fortunate that my blatant surprise wasn't too out of place, or it could have been awkward. I nearly asked for her name before taking notice of the name tag over her left breast, identifying her as Nurse L. Moores. It was all the proof I needed. I took in the woman's identity and then glanced back at the message hovering where I left it. I had no idea what to do with it other than study it thoroughly. That got boring quickly enough, so I returned my attention to the woman writing on the clipboard tethered to the foot of my bed. Somehow, without looking, she noticed me staring at her. "Did you remember anything child?"

I took a second to process the question before looking up at her in surprise. "How?" I never told her that I couldn't remember what happened to me.

She first chuckled before responding. "You look like someone who is lost, or like you forgot something important."

There was a sense of awe I felt at how well she read me. "You've dealt with amnesia?"

"Every day. That fool husband of mine always forgets where he left his keys." After a blink, I joined her in a short bout of laughter. "How much do you remember child?" I told her that all I remembered was waking up on January 3rd for the first day of school after Christmas break. Anything after entering the building was a complete blank.

"I think that's for the best. I would only wish what happened to you on the likes of Jack Slash. Things like that are best left forgotten."

That's what she told me, but I couldn't help but feel intense curiosity. It was then that the blue boxes decided to throw me for a loop.

 **Quest: Repressed**

 _You have woken up in a hospital without any memory of how or why. You can ask, but you've been told that you don't want to know._

 **Success:** _+100-EXP; Unlocked traumatic memories_

 **Rejection:** _Memory remains repressed_

Alongside the small wall of text was the simple options of yes or no. The sheer weirdness of it all stunned me for as long as it took for that strange emotional control to calm me. While I didn't know how I ended up there, but who was responsible was obvious as the nose on my face: Madison Clements, Sophia Hess, and Emma Barnes. For three semesters, they tormented me relentlessly. In hindsight, I should have known they'd do something serious. This left me with an important choice. Whatever the boxes were, they weren't sugar coating anything. I didn't understand what the 100-EXP was worth, but being outright told that the memories were traumatic was something to hesitate about. Then there was the other option. I understood memory repression, but I didn't understand how it would manifest. It would be pretty awkward if I was unable to recognize anyone telling her what happened, but I reasoned that it wouldn't make sense that way.

After some consideration, I decided that it all depended on if I had any use for the memories. That depended on the answer to one question. Fortunately, Laura was only just finishing up on my comatose roommate. "Mrs. Moores?"

"Yes child?"

"Do they know who did it?" I already knew her answer to my question in the instant she grimaced. "If not, then no, I don't want to know." Suddenly the quest box vanished and was replaced by another. (26-EXP)

 **Due to careful analysis, you gain 1-WSDM. WSDM** =9

This time, I was able to school my expression. "Are you sure child?" I nodded back at her, my mind focused on what the latest box meant. WSDM obviously stood for wisdom, and I knew that wisdom was an aspect of one barely familiar game, but I couldn't remember the specifics. Even more important than that, the box said that it increased. I didn't feel any wiser, if that's how it worked, but eight to nine isn't that sudden of a change. There was also the EXP that flashed by. If getting twenty-six could happen just like that, then rejecting those memories was the right choice.

Still, figuring out what was happening with me was starting to become a headache, but everything was lending credence to my game theory. Entertainment options were pretty limited too.

Looking at the three remaining boxes, I ruminated over every detail and their implications. I could heal myself completely just by sleeping in a bed. I had MP, which implied that I could use magic of some kind. (Not that I'd tell anyone that out loud. Myrddin 2.0: no thank you.) Last and most importantly I was able to raise my wisdom through some vaguely specified method. That rose the question: if I could increase that aspect of myself, what else could I increase? There was only one way to find out.

Carefully, so I didn't accidentally pull out any of the tubes or wires attached to me, I began doing sit ups. I only got to three before it was too difficult to do any more. I decided then to give bicycles a shot, timing each pump with the clock's second hand. After nearly a minute, I was reaching my desired limit. (16-EXP)

 **Due to sustained activity, you gain 1-ENDR. ENDR** =4

Four! I couldn't even put to words the indignation that I felt from the insultingly low number. Worst of all, that four meant my endurance was three before. I put an end to all the boxes then flipped myself over a bit less carefully and began a push-up. As scrawny as I was, even that much weight was a challenge, but I would not be deterred. Through struggle and control, I was able to push up from the bed. It was a good lesson on why people did push-ups on the floor. Unwilling to be satisfied until I saw another box pop up, I dropped to my knees and did two more push-ups. (14-EXP)

 **Due to strenuous effort, you gain 1-VIGR. VIGR** =3

Three. That was even worse than my endurance. I knew that vigorous was one of the last words I'd use to describe myself, but three just felt abysmal. Aside from the disappointment about what the boxes were saying about my vigor, it also rose the question of how vigor and endurance were different. Unfortunately, my lack of a dictionary kept me from an easy answer.

That didn't matter to me either way; only those low numbers did. Using the insulting message for motivation, I forced out another push-up then switched back to bicycles. When that became difficult, I stood up and did some amateurish squats.

"Miss Hebert, what do you think you're doing child?!"

And that's when I first learned how awkward pop-ups we're when talking to someone, especially someone angry at me for doing something that I should have known not to do. Turns out that nine wisdom wasn't much to write home about either. That left me stuck trying to come up with an answer to what I was in no condition to realize was a rhetorical question.

"If you can't answer me, then I'll tell you what you are doing?! You're getting back in that bed, you're going to eat this soup I brought you, you're going to lay down, then you're going to wait patiently until the doctor gets to see you. If you're that bored, you can read these." As she finished her tirade, Laura grabbed one pamphlet of each type on a rack near the front door and toss-handed them over. She then put the soup on the adjacent table. "If I hear of you doing that nonsense again, I will strap you down."

After another second of glaring to get her point across, she left me semi-alone again. I sighed and picked up the first of the first aid pamphlets.

 **You have acquired the Skill Book: Basic First Aid (Dressing Wounds) Do you want to learn this skill? Y/N**

My jaw dropped. I tapped the Y then watched in horror as the little pamphlet lit up like a flare and burst into marble sized motes of light.

 **You have learned Basic First Aid 1/5 (Dressing Wounds)**

The booklet vanished, and new information slotted itself into my mind. I knew how to clean wounds, how to prevent people from losing too much blood, and how to bandage them properly. All that played second fiddle to making sure no one else noticed the light show. Fortunately, there was a reassuring lack of anyone running into the room yelling about me being a cape.

And that's when it really set in. I had a power, one that let me improve myself just by putting in the work. It even quantified how I was improving and how much I've improved. There was also what I learned from the pamphlet, and what I could learn from the others.

Taking a quick look at the closed door and my motionless roommate, then cover myself with my blanket and turn my back to the door. Sure that I was safe, I began consuming the others just like the first.

 **You have learned Basic First Aid 2/5 (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation)**

 **You have learned Basic First Aid 3/5 (Setting Bones and Joints)**

 **You have learned Basic First Aid 4/5 (Asphyxiation Treatments)**

 **You have learned Basic First Aid 5/5 (Burns)**

 **By obtaining all Basic First Aid skills, Basic First Aid has evolved into First Aid.**

The influx of info flooded my mind, telling me everything I should and should not do with an injured person, how to identify and prioritize the most sever cases, and how to deal with all the most common injuries I could ever expect to come across. All of it was at my fingertips, waiting for a chance to be used. (Not that I wanted to be in a situation where I would need them.)

Was there an upper limit to my power? Was there a limit to what I could learn? These questions dominated my mind, but I decided that I was getting too far ahead of myself. I had just woken up from a coma, and I was already on the way to thinking I could be Triumvirate level.

I held my arms out and began observing them as I flexed my fingers and rotated them. They were thin, spindly even; a far cry from the sleek and powerful definition that Alexandria possessed. My left hand began threading through the long wavy hair I inherited from my mother. Despite it being nearly a week since I could care for it, it was just like I last remembered it.

I continued doing that absentmindedly while pretending that I was lifting dumbbells in my right arm, wishing that I actually had some weights. Even if I was stuck within human limits, being told how I was improving had a powerful psychological effect that had me craving more.

On a whim, I began flexing my arm. This made moving it significantly more difficult, but I kept at it. What else was I supposed to do? I was trapped inside quiet possibly the most boring hospital in the city with a Spartan Nurse who won't allow me any opportunity to explore my power further. I closed my eyes, sighed, and let my warm arm stop. There was nothing I could do but wait for the doctor to inevitably show up to give me a clean bill of health. I did feel perfectly fine after all. After a while, even the fatigue I felt from my frantic bout of exercise was gone.

It was only after a few more minutes of waiting silently that I finally remembered the bowl of soup that Laura left on the nightstand to my left. I picked it up and observed it closely, finding it to be cheap alphabet soup from a can. Only the best for the sick and helpless after all. It smelled fine and looked appetizing enough, but it didn't elicit a single pang of hunger. That was odd since I had been without solid food for nearly a week. Even stranger was that I wasn't feeling any nausea alongside my lack of hunger. I pondered that mystery for as long as doing so remained entertaining before finally eating it in just a few gulps.

Thankfully, someone who had to be a doctor walked into the room and gave me a practiced smile. "Good afternoon Miss Hebert, I'm Dr. Henderson." A quick glance up confirmed this and let me know that his LV was five. "I just need to take a good look at you to make absolutely sure you're in good health. Just promise to save testing your fitness for last."

My ears burned as I picked up on what he was alluding to. 'The sooner we get it over with, the sooner I'd be able to start living that down,' was what I thought.

As he began going through the rounds, he decided to strike up a conversation. "You're very lucky Miss Hebert. I understand that you don't care to hear the dirty details, but let me say that it is a mystery how you came to us unscathed, aside from the coma. Honestly, all you needed was a wash, a bed, and a IV drip. After that, you looked like it never happened."

I stamped down on the embarrassment from imagining who could have washed me, and how thoroughly, and focused on thinking about the three who had gone too far. No, they went too far long ago, I only just then began to see it. They destroyed my homework almost every day, stole my assignments, ruined my academic credibility, bruised me, and put me down at every opportunity. There was nothing anyone could, or even would do to help me. I was done suffering under their rule in a vain hope that they would finally get bored of me. Like usual, the idea of giving up and letting them win rankled me, but for the first time, that thought was silenced by me realizing that they had already won. I was just too stubborn to see that before.

No matter what, I couldn't think of a way to beat them. I was playing their game, by their rules, with everything rigged in their favor. Fuck that! The metaphorical powers fairy must have agreed, because I had a new game to play…right after I stopped having such an infantile thought process. I even groaned loud enough to alert my physician . "Does something hurt?" I doubted that he had a cure for childishness, so I just shook my head. "In that case, I'd say that you're good to go right after your father wakes up and signs your release forms."

My eyes shot open. "My dad!" Guilt from having forgotten about him welled up before abruptly vanishing.

"Is fine," he answered me with a reassuring tone. "You have a good father Miss Hebert. That's a rare thing in Brockton Bay. If you don't mind me saying, you should talk to him."

I didn't mind, but, "How do I tell him that I want to drop out?"

That seemed to catch the doctor off guard for a moment before he sighed his surprise away. "As a father speaking on the behalf of another, I'd say that you tell him the same way you told me. I know that I'd want my son as far from whoever did that to you as soon as possible. You look like a smart girl Taylor, so you should know that contrary to what the government would have you believe, school isn't your only option. There is online education, homeschooling, working towards a GED, or you can let yourself fall back a year and apply elsewhere."

"What about transferring."

His grimace wasn't encouraging. "Unless you're talking about moving out of the city or some other extenuating circumstances, it's too late for that. Transfers within the same area are usually planned to happen over summer break."

"Hospitalization isn't extenuating enough!" I'll admit that I put too much bite into my tone.

The doctor took it as if it never happened. "In Brockton Bay…no, it isn't." I could almost scream at the unfairness of it all, if I didn't suddenly become calm again. "If you want my advice, ask the school to let you drop out officially. It won't look bad on your record, and you can easily add it in as part of the settlement the school is offering."

That was news to me. It really made me wonder what happened, because it sounded worse every time I heard anything related to it. This only hardened my resolve.

 **Quest: Reeducation**

 _You have decided that it was time to move on from Winslow High and leave your past behind. Finalize your plans to do so before school begins next week._ ( **Time limit:** _69 hours_ )

 **Success:** _+500-EXP:_

 **Failure:** Continued enrollment in Winslow.

Before I could read it over, the doctor decided that it was time to remove the IV drip from my arm and turn off the heart monitor. "I'm sure that you'll want to remove the rest yourself. The plastic bag under your bed has a change of clothes that your father brought over. I think it should be you who wakes him up."

I nodded in his general direction while reading the latest pop-up, wishing that I could just move it to the side. I nearly facepalmed when an irritated wave of my hand ended up moving it just as I wanted it to. With the blue box out of the way, I removed the wires attached to my skin and found the promised clothes. What I found in the bag were year old clothes that I never got around to throwing away. They fit, but the legs were too short, which was a testament to how much taller I became.

I glanced at the box to my right side before deciding that my priorities lay with my father. With strong and sure steps, I made my way out of the room. Of course the first person I'd run into would be Laura, who was giving me a stink eye.

 _Nurse_

 _LV: 3 Laura Moores_

 _Spartan Nurse_

I seriously wondered when that had changed, but it wasn't important. Thankfully, the hospital seemed to be more of a bigger clinic in size, making it easy to navigate and reassured me that the incident wasn't going to be too much of a financial burden on our limited funds. We have never been truly secure, especially since we lost mom. An overwhelming sorrow was ready to take me, but it changed into a sense of loss and a wish that she was still with us. A stray tear of gratitude came out when I realized that I was still feeling the most important emotions in the face of whatever was obviously suppressing any potent emotions I would have normally struggled through.

That was how I was when I made it to the lobby to find my dad laid up on five lined up chairs. I mostly ignored the info floating over his head.

 _Dockworker's Union Head of Human Resources_

 _LV:8 Danny Hebert_

Even that many chairs were not enough, forcing him to be curled up slightly. The signs of sleep deprivation and prolonged worry we're obvious even to the most untrained eyes. He never looked great since we lost my mom, but never that bad. I realized then that what they did to me, they did to my dad too; and for that, they _would_ pay.

I turned my attention back to the quest and made sure to glean as much info from it I could. I thanked my English professor of a mother for the knowledge needed to parse through the grammar. Unlike last time, there was no pros or cons involved, only rewards or punishment. I tapped the Y while idly wondering if there was a precognitive element in this strange power. (That's what the question marks were implying at least.)

I struck the unimportant query from my mind, walked up to my dad, then shook his shoulder. "Dad."

He stirred, his awakening fitful, quick, but incomplete. "Annette?"

I felt my heart tear at his error. "No dad. It's your little owl."

Light filled his eyes, then it all hit him at once. "Taylor?"

"Hi dad." His tears soaked my shoulder.

 _*L8: 11-2; 11-2; 10-2; 17-5; 20-5; 21-5*_

He had been looking over an important work contract near the end of the day when he got the call. Learning that his daughter was on her way to the hospital was one of the last things any decent father would want to hear.

He dropped everything and raced to his truck. Nothing would stop him from getting to his daughter as soon as he could, which was why the infamous Hebert temper burned like the sun when a cop had the nerve to pull him over for going ten miles over the limit. He would have jumped out of his car to give the man a verbal lashing if the more rational part of his mind didn't warn him that doing so would only delay him further.

He instead waited for him to saunter up to the window before silencing him with a glare. "My daughter, is in the hospital." It was Danny's shortest traffic stop ever, the officer only having the guts to warn him to be careful.

When Danny learned what happened, he stormed up to Principal Blackwell and demanded to know how she let that happen. She just sat there in her dreary funeral suit and ridiculous bowl haircut. She then had the gall to offer a settlement when he threatened to sue.

When he returned to Taylor's room, all burnt out, he realized that sueing them wasn't an option. He swallowed his pride, called her back, and told her that he needed to think about it. She gave him a week to decide.

Danny took time off work to be there for her. The men understood and tried to make things at work as easy for as they could. Still, seeing his daughter oblivious to the world around her drained the life out of him. Sleep came and went, but the orderlies were kind enough to let him sleep in the lobby whenever he could manage it.

He dreamed of his wife's wake, of looking down at her still body. Annette's daughter looked somuch like face blurred, until he couldn't distinguish between them. Both of them were beyond him.

An earthquake shook the world around him. Everything crashed and crumbled until the waking would claimed him once again. Through blurry vision, the face of the one he lost looked down on him. "Annette?"

The young woman smiled and shook her head. "No dad. It's your little owl."

"Taylor?" Her eyes were different. Many say that she got his eyes, but only Annette could have that spark. Her vitality spilled out and lit a flame that had been dull for nearly four years. He had wallowed in self pity long enough…but first, he was going to hug his daughter.

 ****ANWtP****

 _ **Yeah, that's about it for the prologue. I think I want the early arcs to be more character, emotion, and event driven with her stats being a side focus. As for future build, Taylor is smart, so mage is inevitable (as is munchkin-ing.) Thing is, mage has plenty of sub-classes and potential for creativity. I won't be giving you guys a flying artillery gamer here.**_

 _ **Ultimately, I just wanted to put my system out there for some others to make use of. So many people forgot that Han Jee-Han could get a little EXP when stat grinding, even the original writer. (Or maybe his EXP needs became too high for it to make a dent.)**_

 _ **PS. Here's her current stats.**_

 **Status**

 **The Gamer**

 **Name:** Taylor Anne Hebert

 **Title:** N/A

 **LV:** 1 (Next LV: 56/200)

 **HP:** 80/80 (REGN: 5/min.×2)

 **MP:** 200/200 (REGN: 10/min.)

 **VIGR:** 3

 **ENDR:** 4

 **DEXT:** 6

 **INTL:** 15

 **WSDM:** 9

 **INTU:** 6

 **Unspent Points:** 0


	2. Chapter 2

**_With my first chapter, I got plenty of questions regarding what the stats mean in terms of how Taylor interacts with the world. That got me in a mood for math and research, and I've decided on how VIGR and INTL factor into the forces she can dish out (details will be at the end of the next chapter.) At its core, the math should be simple enough for any high school freshman. HP and MP formulas and some of how skills work will be revealed there too._**

 ** _I just don't want to bog you guys down with everything all at once._**

 _*L1: E56; 3; 4; 6; 15; 9; 6;*_

A quarter hour had passed before dad was hugged out enough to let me go. "Taylor, thank God that you're okay. I…I was so worried."

"It's okay dad, I'm fine. I feel better than ever." That's what I said out loud, but internally, I was flooded with apprehension. It would have been outright panic if not for the feeling being washed away. That still didn't make telling my dad about my plan to quit Winslow much easier. Mom had always preached about the importance of a proper education. The idea of me dropping out would be boarder-line sacrilege to her.

It took all the rationale I had at my disposal just to tie in the tug of war splitting my heart in two, so I stood there long enough for dad to pull me into another hug. Things were none the easier for me until I felt tears on my shoulder. He was still hurting, and I only one idea on how to help him. "Dad, I want to drop out of Winslow."

With that, everything he was doing and feeling came to a screeching halt. He leaned back from me with a look of pure confusion playing across his face. That was better than anger or disappointment at least. He hadn't said anything, so; in for a buck, in for a grand. "I heard that the school is offering a settlement. I want to drop out, officially."

He ran a hand through his balding hair and sighed loudly. "Taylor, is this about the locker? Do you know who did it?"

And there was the question that I didn't want to deal with. There was no way that I could tell him that my former best friend, and daughter of one of his friends, was my top suspect. I dismissed the locker comment as part of something I didn't need, then fixed the hardest stare I could on him. "Dad, I don't want to go back. Everyone is against me there, most of the teachers are against me. The game is rigged against us, so I refuse to play anymore."

I'm not sure if it was what I said or something in my eyes, but the roaring anger that I could feel building up in tense arms abated. He was even more confused, simply unable to come to grips with what I was telling him. "Dad, we can have them let me drop out on good terms. I can take time to study on my own. I can get away from all the teenage drama, at least until I can apply for Arcadia. I'm only fifteen…I can afford to take a year off." His eyes glazed over as he tried to think about everything I said. "We can talk later, at home." Home proved to be the key word, because he stood up and made his way for the exit. "After the paperwork."

He froze mid-step and chuckled sheepishly, refusing to look back at me in his embarrassment. He made a beeline for the receptionist desk and left me with a few moments to myself. I ended up thinking about the quest I had accepted, primarily on how it was pushing me to make these decisions for fear of the consequences. I didn't get a sense of manipulation, mainly because I decided to drop out before receiving the quest. It felt more like, me. Like the part of myself that told me to do something before my more cautious side held me back. That's when it hit me. The school, the trio, the uncaring crowds; they weren't all that was holding me back. I was holding myself back by going along with it all. Society says to go through the school system to learn at a set pace that's the same as everyone else, but wasn't that knowledge available at the library. Online too, once I thought about it. People skipped grades every year, and the only thing stopping me from doing so was a stupid optional part of my quest and myself. Either way, I didn't want to go back home anymore.

Fortunately, what I did want had nowhere near the potential for disappointment, so I was able to tell him only moments after we got in his truck. "Dad, can we go to the library."

There seemed to be no end to the times I'd catch him off guard. "What happened to going home?"

"Well, I realized, just because I'm dropping out, doesn't mean I should stop learning."

He frowned and looked at me with concern in his eyes. "Are you sure? You…just woke up from a coma."

I gave him the best teenage deadpan I could. "I'm fine. It's the library, not a triathlon." Next came a pleading gaze. "Please."

He looked at me with eyes even larger than usual, took the time to think about my request, then pulled me into a awkward hug. "That's my girl, but I'm sticking around to keep an eye on you. If you feel woozy, for even a second, we're going home." I nodded firmly in acceptance.

The ride to the library wasn't very eventful, but was instead an exercise in comfortable silenced. I could tell that my dad was busy coming to terms with what I wanted to do. I also knew that he wasn't going consider stopping me for more than a few moments. I had forgotten what a supportive father he was.

Brockton Bay Central Library was more like an art museum in design: tall ceilings, art on the walls, and aesthetically pleasing pillars. It tended to be pretty busy between the hours of 12 and 1 pm due to employees of the many nearby offices wanting a quiet place to spend their lunch hour. That's why there were only a few people with fifteen minutes till two.

The computers up on the second floor were tempting for me, but I came with a purpose. Thinking back on myself, I remembered that Biology was my weakest subject even if I didn't take the constant sabotage into account. That made the Biology/Health section my first target.

I didn't get more than two steps into the section before I was distracted. The culprits, physical fitness books. I clearly remembered the indignation I felt at being told how unfit I was. Most of the books were just about healthy eating habits and losing weight, but there were a few exceptions. Unfortunately, most of them were about lifting weights or joining gyms, which I didn't want my dad spending money on.

I decided then to check out a few paperbacks too thin to have their titles be legible on the side. The first was a bright blue book of a minimalist design. The title 'Dynamic Tension' covered the top, with the author's name in the bottom left quadrant. "By: Harry Wong, huh?" I looked at the fit Chinese man on the right side, who was in some kind of martial arts pose I had no reference for.

 **A new skill has been created through repeated action. Due to constant observation, the skill Observe has been created.**

"Observe?"

I was surprised when for the first time, an orange box appeared before me.

 **Dynamic Tension**

 _An exercise program that was first popularized by Charles Atlas. Details how to attain strength without using weights._

That…it honestly sounded too good to be true. I took a quick look at the end of the book and found that it wasn't even 140 pages, with large text and later pages dominated by pictures. I'd have in read within an hour easily, if not half that.

I was done in ten. The early chapters detailed all the important basic info, with everything else after that being pictures detailing martial arts stances. What I learned made it feel like the best spent ten minutes in my life. It only took me seconds to realize that by pitting my muscles against other muscles, my strength would never go beyond any resistance I could provide because my strength was my resistance. The idea that I couldn't obtain superhuman strength was something I refused to consider. All I needed was to learn proper breathing exercises and a martial art to practice.

I put the book back were I got it then immediately put the principals to practice by tensing my legs and arms as I rummaged through the books, looking for a book on one of the two.

 **You have acquired the Skill Book: Basic Martial Arts (Tai Chi). Do you want to learn this skill? Y/N**

I almost tapped yes, but remembered what happened in the hospital. Destroying a handful of pamphlets that are handed out for free was one thing. Destroying a library book would be stealing. Buying from a bookstore would be different, but I had to save that for later. Cheep used instruction booklets shouldn't be too costly of an expense.

I looked over the information about Observe, which I left up so I wouldn't forget about it. I muttered the word under my breath, causing another orange box about the Tai Chi instruction book to pop up. I compared the contents with the back of the book, and found the orange box to be more concise and and more useful.

Once I started using Observe on the Biology books, it even told me what grade levels the book covered. I snatched up two of the tenth grade books then looked to see if my dad was still around. That's when another big shock hit me.

 _Wards Leader_

 _LV:49 Carlos Riviera/Aegis_

 _Redundancy Host_

I was struck dumb, but not enough so to prevent me from testing out Observe on him.

 **Observe's level has gone up. Observe is LV: 2.**

 **Carlos Riviera/Aegis LV:** 49

 **HP:** 3050/3050

 **MP:** N/A

 _Known publicly as Aegis, Carlos is currently the oldest member of the Wards, making him leader. He wants to be a good leader and role model, but is unsure how to do so. The highly volatile new member isn't making it easy for him._

With just a look and a word, I had learned more about the Wards leader than just about everyone else. I would have normally been terrified by that, but it was reduced to being uncomfortable. I foolishly waved away the orange box, and came up against a handsome seventeen year old hero who had mistaken the motion as a friendly wave. I'd probably been giving him eye contact through the info box too.

To my repressed horror, he began walking right up to me. My eyes trailed his strong jaw which was a perfect match for a hero. His smile was friendly and his dense and lean muscles seemed to flex with every movement. "Hi there."

"Uh…hi." I was officially on autopilot.

"I'm surprised to see another student in the library during school hours. You're not from Arcadia, are you?"

I blushed at the correct assumption. "No…Winslow."

"Really? I didn't think they'd let their students out for self study."

"I don't think they care."

As awkward as that should have made things, Aegis plowed through like a champ. "So, you skipped class…to study?" I glanced up from the books I was hiding behind to see him giving off the most blatantly bemused expression I'd ever seen.

"It's not like that." I shut my lips like a vice. Why would a hero be interested in my life story?

He apparently picked up on my hesitance. "Sorry about that. I didn't mean to pry. How about you join us? The more the merrier, right?"

I had no idea how to respond to that, only that I had no logical reason to refuse. With 'autopilot' still going strong, I nodded and followed his every step as my emotions fluctuated between trepidation to outright panic. I likely would have escaped if the latter lasted longer than a quarter second. At least I didn't need a reminder to keep my muscles tense on the way. (16-EXP)

 **Due to strenuous effort, you have gain 1-VIGR. VIGR=4**

My mood shifted instantly to happy. I had proof positive that pitting my muscles against each other could work; though it was strange that it improved in less than a minute. Another strange thing was smiling at an invisible box while facing a group of your fellow teenagers.

"Hey, Carlos. Who's the space case?" The speaker was a fit looking chocolate skinned girl by the name of Kendra Sonders. I tried to be angry at her comment and her resemblance to one of my tormenters, but her bubbly tone and kitten like curiosity threw me off.

"Kendra, what did we say about using your words?"

"Not to." The two other boys chuckled, while Carlos face-palmed. I guessed that she got it wrong on purpose. (22-EXP)

 **Due to instinctual insight, you gain 1-INTU. INTU=7**

I glared at the pop-ups, wishing I could move them out of the way. They granted the wish by moving back from me until they were part of the background. They thankfully took my glaring differently. "Don't mind Kendra. She likes to joke around." I looked at the thinly built speaker and froze again.

 _Wards Tinker_

 _LV: 5 Chris Matthews/Kid Win_

 _Modular Technology Host_

Yet another Ward was at the library, and I suspected that I was the only one who knew. I glanced at the third boy and found to my relief that he was just a normal guy named Andrew Whales. He was an example of masculinity in a different vein from Carlos. If Aegis features were chiseled, Andrew's were more like a solid brick.

Heedless of my reactions, the pale skinned tinker began introducing everyone. I wondered about the levels over their heads. Andrew was actually a six while Kendra was a three. I could understand Aegis being at 49, but it was hard to figure out why the other cape there was only five. "So, what's your name?"

"It's Taylor." I had answered him without even thinking about it.

Kendra jumped to her feet and leaned up to me. "Hey Taylor. Have you thought about getting a makeover?"

"I…what?" It had been nearly two years since even the idea of getting a makeover crossed my mind.

"Seriously? You have amazing hair. You have to let me work with it." I blushed at the compliments that hit right at home. My hair, which I inherited from my mom, was the only one of my features that I was really proud of.

"Kendra," Carlos chimed in, " we're supposed to be studying."

"Speak for yourself. I want to be a stylist," she countered with a playful wave.

Carlos sighed while the other boys chuckled. "She's got you there," Chris added.

"Fine, you'll need her permission first."

And that's how I ended up studying Biology alongside two of the Wards while getting my hair worked into a loose ponytail braid. It was the safest compromise I could talk her down to. It didn't make the experience any less awkward since I couldn't decide between inwardly gushing at the rare experience of the former or being completely embarrassed from the latter. In either case, I decided to hide behind my book so they wouldn't see how I was reacting.

In minutes, we were lulled into a comfortable silenced, and I was tearing through the thick textbook. My fingers traced each line in a blink as my mind carefully recorded any unfamiliar information. Even when re-reading some paragraphs, pages simply flew by. The pages turned like there were caught by the wind before I was through whole chapters in a matter of minutes. I only stopped when I surprisingly found the index staring back at me. (82-EXP)

I ignored the flood of pop-ups in the background, slowly closed the book, and immediately regretted it. The two Wards were openly gaping at me, and judging by the lack of tugging from my hair, so was Kendra. Even the stone faced Andrew was giving me his full attention. "Dang girl, had enough to read yet?" Before she could stop her, she grabbed the book and leafed through to the end. "You just read through a 400 page textbook in thirty minutes. That's not human." She closed in on me, eyes staring into my soul. "Are you a cape?"

That sentence had me switching from terrified panic to cold calm so hard, it felt like my arteries had whiplash. "What?" Too bad calm didn't mean eloquent.

"Kendra, how many times have we told you that it is rude to accuse people of being capes." It could have been my subconscious, but I felt like Carlos let, 'especially if you're right,' go unsaid.

"Come on. How else could someone read that fast?" she retorted.

I said the first thing that came to mind. "My mom was an English professor."

"Really? That's the best you've got?"

I really had no idea what to say. I had powers for no more than a few hours, and I was already on the verge of outing myself as a parahuman. "25 thousand words per minute." We all looked at Andrew, who had his phone out. I was shocked because I felt and hoped that I wasn't reading that fast in front of my peers. "The world record for speed reading by a normal human is 25 thousand words per minute. Your argument is invalid."

"Really, Whales. Why do you have to be so anti-cape?"

"I'm not anti-cape. I just think that we shouldn't ignore the feats of mortal men just because super powers exist. If a normal guy can do that, then Taylor can read a textbook."

I've never internally thanked anyone that hard before. Outwardly, I managed to say something to remove more suspicion. "I didn't even read it all. I already knew a lot of it." A third was a lot, right? I refused to even think about all the paragraphs I re-read.

"Okay, okay…you're just a really fast reader. Speed reading is a pretty silly power. I'm still excited. If we've got a new self-study-buddy, then that must mean they're going to reveal a new Ward soon."

"Wait, really?" That was news to me.

She tilted a head at me in confusion. "You didn't get the mem…"

"Kendra! She's from Winslow."

I looked between Kendra and Carlos, perplexed. I could feel that she just let slip some kind of secret, one that was exclusive to Arcadia. "Oops. Forget I said anything." It also had something to do with the Wards, two of whom were with us.

The most important bit was that she thought there was going to be a new Ward because I was a new addition. It was a poorly kept secret that the Wards attended Arcadia, yet no one had figured out who they were. "You're all decoys."

"Too late. She's figured it out," Chris chimed in. "I knew you were a smart cookie-"

"I do like cookies."

"-the moment I…" He and everyone else entered a laughing fit at Kendra's sudden quip. Chris was the first to recover. "The moment I saw you." He tried to glare at her, but there was no heat.

Carlos sighed, though it was more happy than resigned. "Yeah. Cat's out of the bag."

"Yep. I'm fake Shadow Stalker, fake Gallant, fake Aegis, and fake Kid Win," she said gesturing to herself, Andrew, Carlos, and Chris in that order.

"That…makes a lot of sense." As did keeping the fact that I could tell who was who secret.

"So, think anyone here isn't a fake?"

If I wasn't quickly getting used to her, that question would have knocked me off balance. "Not sure, but there's no way you're Shadow Stalker: not enough angst." The extra loud snorts from Chris and Carlos all but confirmed the accusation of the dark cape's character.

"Girl please. You're just jealous of my mad acting skills. You wish you could go from the awesomeness that is Kendra Sonders to the mistress of shadows like I can."

"Okay, that's enough fun. We're supposed to be studying."

"Oh come on Carlos. Taylor did enough studying for all of us."

He tried to retort, but Chris cut him off. "Give it up, man. It's a lost cause, and I can't even think about math right now."

"And that settles it. Let's do Cape Vs. instead. You're up first Taylor."

Caught off guard and not particularly fond of that particular game, I said the first two that came to mind. "Kid and Aegis." The two exchanged glances while I was busy hating my brain to mouth filter.

"Aegis."

"Aegis."

"Aegis/Kid Win," the pair said at the same time. After a second of looking around the table, Chris looked at me pleadingly. "Come on, Taylor. Back me up here."

I really didn't want to answer that question, especially when I could literally see that Carlos was on a much higher level. Hoping for something good to tell him, I muttered an Observe while humming thoughtfully behind my hand. The info appeared over his head, and my eyes raced over it in a second.

 **Chris Mathews/Kid Win LV:** 5

 **HP:** 286/290 (1976/1980)

 **MP:** N/A

 _Known publicly as Kid Win, Chris is the sole Tinker of the Brockton Bay Wards. Despite being a natural people person on the surface, he suffers from mild depression due to his dyscalculia, ADHD, and inability to realize his Tinkering specialty._

I couldn't help but feel sad at what I read. It didn't help that he took my expression to mean that he was all alone in his vote. Even with the numbers in parentheses, which I assume to be his LV and HP as Kid Win, he was lower than Aegis. Taking a moment to think about their powers put things further in Aegis's favor. Maybe if he knew his specialty, but I couldn't do anything about that. At least not without revealing who one of us was…maybe.

A mostly formed idea struck me. It would keep our identities be safe from the others two, but would it work against the two actual capes? I had already done something strange but within human limits, but revealing Chris's specialty in even a roundabout way could be enough to connect the dots. I also asked myself why I felt any desire to keep my secret at all. They weren't Emma. They were two guys who I was enjoying spending time with, who just happened to be Wards, and who would become better heroes with the info at my disposal. Inevitably, the loudest question in my mind won out: What would a hero do?

My mind made up, I came out of my thoughts to find them discussing what a fight between Lung and Crawler would be like. I had an easy answer for who loses: everybody.

As if keying in to how I was no longer lost in thought, all four had their attention on me. I managed to recognize that Kendra had already asked my opinion on the match-up. I swallowed the lump in my throat and focused on what I wanted to say. "I'm…I don't really like to do Capes Vs. Can we try making up our own capes instead."

I sat there, some part of me hoping that they would shoot my request down as another part feared that they would. Kendra shrugged. "That sounds like fun. I bet you have a great idea too."

"Well, it's just something that I read recently, about something called modular technology. I thought it could be a decent Tinker specialty." It was then that I realized that I had no functional idea of what that meant. The sight of Chris chuckling was the cherry on top of my befuddlement sundae.

"Sorry Taylor, it's just that most technology could be called modular. The whole idea behind modular design is swapping out one part of a big machine to improve upon or change its function. A modular Tinker would need a way to carry around a bunch of parts, or some kind of telle…porter."

My trepidation blossomed under the realization that Chris had figured out what I was alluding towards in seconds. I should have been sweating from the scrutinizing gaze I knew I was under. It was only then that it hit me that I put my fate into the hands of someone I barely knew, and it was too late to go back.

"Earth Bet to Taylor, Earth Bet to Chris! What happened?"

What happened was that I just outed myself to another cape, and worse; I revealed that I knew more about that cape's powers than he did. To top it off, I was suspiciously avoiding eye contact instead of acting clueless like I planned. I forced myself to look up and see Chris blinking owlishly at me. It didn't help things feel any less awkward.

It took what felt like minutes for him to snap out of it. "Sorry guys. I was…thinking that…her idea sounds pretty cool…now that I think about it."

The two non-Wards gave out confused glances while Carlos sighed loudly. "Sorry if Chris freaked you out. He has a bad habit of getting lost in his head sometimes."

"Uh, yeah. ADHD can be a real bitch." Carlos did that shoulder punch thing boys do while Kendra teased him about swearing. After that, things finally settled down to the point where Chris was paying just a little bit more attention to me than would be considered normal. If it weren't for knowing why, I would feel like he had some kind of crush on me. That didn't stop the others from getting the idea, much to my embarrassment. Kendra was a human facsimile of the cat who caught the canary. To avoid the situation, I finally turned my attention to the pop-ups in the background.

 **You have leveled up. Do you want to use your unspent points? Y/N**

 **Due to instinctual insight, you gain 4-INTU. INTU=10**

 **Due to careful analysis, you gain 1-WSDM. WSDM=10**

 **Speed Reading's level went up. Speed Reading is LV: 4.**

 **Due to diligent study, you gain 2-INTL. INTL=17**

 **A new skill has been created through repeated action. Due to rapid reading, the skill Speed Reading has been created.**

If I didn't realize that I could move them around with just a thought, I wouldn't have been able to read them without looking suspicious. Actually getting a speed reading power was one thing, but the last part was the clincher. In hindsight, it should have been obvious that I could go up levels.

I mentally pressed the Y…to no avail. Apparently I could move them mentally, but actual commands had to be done with my fingers.

The sudden ringing from four different phones put an end to my thoughts and to the third turn of the game. The boys were pretty business like as they gathered up their books, but Kendra moaned in blatant disappointment. Ignoring her, Carlos gave me a smile that had my undivided attention. "Sorry, but we have to head home now. It was nice meeting you Taylor."

"Uh, thanks."

"Hey, Taylor. What's your number?" Kendra asked me with no regard for personal space.

"My…number?"

"Well duh, your cellphone number."

I knew that's what she meant, but that still left a small issue with that. "I don't have one."

"Really! How do you keep in touch with your friends.?" As innocent as her question was, it hit me like an accusation. Saying I had no friends would have been pitiful, but lying about it would have been outright pathetic. I chose instead to hide behind my hair. "Taylor…be honest with me." Her tone was soft and more serious than I ever heard her. "How many friends do you have?" I didn't want to answer, so I shook my head, futilely hoping that she'd misinterpret me. "Oh, Taylor." Instead, I was pulled into a hug.

I remember my past experiences with Emma: all the sleep overs, talking about capes, the kinds of heroes we wanted to be, make-up, makeovers, her fledgling modeling career, ending in her stabbing me in the back and spitting over everything we had. A part of me feared that Kendra would do the same, but it was too quiet to drown out my defiance against her and her campaign against me. On the off chance she turned on me, I'd just move on.

I pulled away from her gently and wiped an unexpected tear from my right eye. A cursory glance told me that all the boys left us, though I did catch Chris slipping out of sight. Kendra seemed to be waiting for me to respond. "Can we do email?"

After her nod, we exchanged contact information, including my home phone number. She didn't ask a single question, but she managed to make me feel like she understood. She was gone before I could think to Observe her, but that wasn't a big deal.

I decided then was a good time to see what my leveling up looked like. I tried saying yes and was glad to see that vocal commands worked too.

 **Status**

 **The Gamer**

 **Name:** Taylor Anne Hebert

 **Title:** N/A

 **LV:** 2 (Next LV: 182/200)

 **HP:** 140/140 (REGN: 6/min.×2)

 **MP:** 270/270 (REGN: 12/min.)

 **VIGR:** 4

 **ENDR:** 4

 **DEXT:** 6

 **INTL:** 17

 **WSDM:** 10

 **INTU:** 10

 **Unspent Points:** 5

My level shouldn't have been much of a surprise, but it hit me hard when I compared myself to everyone else who wasn't a cape. It was like having how physically weak I was thrown in my face all over again. How could I possibly be useful as a hero when any normal person could run roughshod over me. I thought of Carlos again and glared at the imaginary 49 that was mocking me. I would join the Wards when I'm stronger than Aegis; fifty would be my goal. My first step: facing the fact that my dad watched the whole exchange with a smile on his face.

 _*L5+32: 4+9; 5; 8+20; (208); [3]; 13*_

He had always been running in place, working hard but never getting anything done. It's what had defined Chris's career as Kid Win. He would spend hours at a time Tinkering in his lab, doing everything he could to finish a project in spite of his ADHD, only to leave dozens of high tech and oddly shaped bricks. But, like a light bulb shining light on the obvious, one girl had somehow told him the truth. Those piles of unfinished projects that he stuffed into corners weren't junk, they were modules.

If the circumstances of the reveal were anything else, he'd be racing to get back to his lab to try out the dozens of configurations he already had at his disposal. Instead, his mind was on Taylor. His first impressions of her were of a shy and awkward girl who was well outside her comfort zone. While that still held true, his last impression of her was far more important: she was a cape with a terrifying power.

Chris glanced at Carlos and found him to be going about the day as if nothing of significance happened; though he was a bit more chipper than usual. It wasn't how someone who just experienced a cape encounter out of costume would act.

That wasn't all that surprising. Thanks to Andrew, it was easy to believe that her speed reading had nothing to do with powers. He still believed that. Even choosing Kid Win and Aegis was something he dismissed as a fluke without a single thought, especially after the decoy secret came out. She would have gotten off scot-free, but she told him his specialty…something that even he didn't know.

Publicly, Brockton Bay thought his specialty was in energy guns. He thought his specialty was in energy guns. Taylor knew different, all because of her ability to see what another cape's powers were.

Capes were as a rule, cagey when it came to their civilian identities. He was sure that Taylor was smart enough to know that he would get an idea of what her powers were. No matter how he tried to spin it, he was the only one who benefited. It's just that the idea that a stranger would risk so much to help him out was baffling, but it was the only thing that made sense.

All that ended in Chris being sandwiched between the unwritten rules of cape conduct, informing his leader, and betraying the trust of a genuinely nice girl who had done nothing wrong. It was too much to think about, so he decided to save the decision for later.

Maybe after he finishes that teleporter he'd been working on.

 ***ANWtP***

 ** _I've actually been doing dynamic tension for the past week, and have found it to be pretty effective. Done right, it tests my strength, stamina, and control all at once as long as I supplement with push-ups and cardio._**

 ** _Now I know that I should have had Taylor question the fact that her power considers parahuman's hosts to their power, but I couldn't find somewhere to put it without damming up the chapter's flow. I'll get on it later._**

 ** _These OC's were brought to you by my desire for characters who would push the story down my desired path, but Kendra was too delightful to not devise some further use for her. That's what I get for designing an anti-Sophia._**

 ** _This is how I see Taylor without the paranoia for betrayal that Emma instilled into her cannon counterpart. She isn't much wiser than the one who thought infiltrating the Undersiders would work out…or that she was fooling Tattletale._**


	3. Chapter 3

**_Well, I said I didn't want to bog you guys down with too much info at once, but that's kind of what happened this chapter, but I did end up simplifying my ideas for stamina. I wanted her recovery to be at an enhanced human level early on rather than superhuman, but the math got far too complicated._**

 ** _I also made some noticeable changes to the former chapters, but nothing that affects anything here except for her current EXP count and required EXP to next level. What will happen from now on is that Taylor only gets stat training EXP after earning the stat point. This makes tracking what her level should be easier for me._**

 ** _Here's chapter three._**

 _ ***L2: E182; 4; 4; 6; 17; 10; 10***_

I didn't know what kind of spirit of fortune was smiling over me, but dad didn't ask me a single question about the kids I had joined from out of nowhere. I decided then that I had enough excitement for the day. Of course we didn't leave before renewing my library card and checking out every eleventh grade book they would let me. I learned my lesson the first time when it came to the Speed Reading 'skill' I actually _did have_. It may not have been superhuman, but it could attract the wrong sort of attention if I failed to keep it in check. Anyone asking why I was returning them so fast would just get a story about me using them as reference material. So long as the books are returned undamaged, they shouldn't care too much.

Dad was silent on the ride home, so I took the chance to look into the most important info box of the day, my status page. Level, health, magic, regeneration, vigor, endurance, dexterity, intelligence, wisdom, and intuition. These were how my video game power quantified what I was capable of, though I still had little idea what it meant. I remembered that Aegis had over 3000 HP and saw that Kid Win had 1980 with his armor. Mine was a measly 140. I wished that I had a way to get more info on what it meant.

…

I would have face-palmed if not for my father sitting in the driver's seat. I tried to will myself to Observe my HP like how I could will the boxes to move around, but it didn't work. On the verge of giving up, I tried saying it under my breath instead

 **HP:**

 _LV×50+VIGR×10 REGN_ =LV+ENDR

 _A measure of how much Damage one can withstand before being rendered Incapacitated, Unconscious, or Terminal. HP is reduced by receiving Standard, Brutal, or Critical Damage respectively._

It worked, but left me with questions about what brutal and critical meant in that context, so I Observed them.

 **Brutal Damage:**

 _Damage that breaks bones, tears muscle groups, or agitates vital organs. Damage value×2 (×4 for the head). Can result in physiological or psychological Status Effects._

 **Critical Damage:**

 _Damage that shatters bones, severs muscle groups, or traumatizes vital organs. Damage value×3 (×4/×7/×10 for the lungs/heart and large arteries/vital neurons). Can result in permanent physiological or psychological Status Effects._

Those were things I would have been happier not knowing, but needed to know regardless. I will do the two boxes to vanish, but realized that they wouldn't go away without me physically pressing the X. I opted instead for wanting them out of the way and seeing what else I could learn about my status page.

 **Gamer Level:**

 _The Gamer's Level is unique to The Gamer. Increases max HP and MP by 50×LV. Adds 5 Unspent Points per LV earned. LV increases from earning EXP. The EXP required to the next Level equals current LV×100._

 **Non-Gamer Levels:**

 _Non-Gamer Levels are calculated from their base HP added to the HP value of any worn armor._

 **Threat Level:**

 _Threat Level applies to enemies aware of your presence. Total equals Non-Gamer Level + Equipped Weapon Level._

Observe decided to include every type of level that was relevant.

 **Class** :

 _This is the individual's current role in life._

 **Name:**

 _Designation, appellation, moniker, denomination, the thing on your birth certificate. (Not everything has a name.)_ *

Note to self, don't ask my power stupid questions with obvious answers.

 **Gamer Titles:**

 _Titles can be earned through special actions._

 **Parahuman Titles:**

 _Parahuman Titles are applied based on the true nature of the power they are hosting._

 **Miscellaneous Titles:**

 _Nicknames that The Gamer and/or many others know the individual by._

 **EXP:**

 _EXP is earned from training Stats, completing Quest's, or reducing enemy HP to zero. EXP value of enemies = Threat LV×10 + total value of stats + LV of highest Combat Skill. (Enemies with Titles provide 2×EXP.)_

 **MP:**

 _LV×50+INTL×10_ REGN=LV+WSDM

 _A measure of how much Mana is available to spend on using Active or Sustained skills requiring MP._

 **VIGR:** 4 (2.5%)

 _A measure of your strength and vitality. The Gamer can bench press VIGR×40lb. Increases maximum HP by 10×VIGR. (Damage is dependent on your Melee Combat Techniques.)_

 **ENDR** 4 (92.4%)

 _A measure of your stamina and hardiness. Increases HP REGN by ENDR value. Increases maximum SP by 10×ENDR._

 **SP:**

 _10×ENDR REGN_ =5%/min.

 _A measure of how much stamina is available to spend on using Active or Sustained skills requiring stamina or when physically active._

 **Do you want your SP to be visible? Y/N**

I whispered yes and was glad to see it show up as a green bar on my status page.

 **DEXT:** 6 (74.3%)

 **A measure of your quickness and precision. Higher DEXT grants more Attacks Per Second. (APS is calculated from your Melee Combat Techniques.)**

 **INTL:** 17 (2.7%)

 _A measure of your cognition and mental scope. Energy attacks deal 5×INTL damage. Increases maximum MP by 10×INTL._

 **WSDM:** 10 (60%)

 _A measure of your understanding and mental flexibility. Increases MP REGN by WSDM value._

 **INTU:** 10 (37.2%)

 _A measure of your instincts and sociability. Having higher INTU improves reaction times to sudden stimuli and extrasensory perception._

 **Unspent Points:**

 _Points that you can put into your six Stats. Spent points can't be reimbursed. Stats increased this way loose their Training Progress._

 **Speed Reading's level went up. Speed Reading is LV: 5.**

So. Many. Pop-ups.

So. Much. Info.

If I couldn't move them around, I would have been completely blind to my surroundings. The best I could get out of it was I could knock myself out with just two energy attacks (provided that I could get any); that I could use Mana, which was pretty much magic; that parahumans we're hosts to their powers, whatever that meant; and lastly, I didn't want to spend my stat points. Something about being from a lower-middle class made me want to save anything of value I could, and those would be harder to come by as I level up.

I only spent 45 seconds reading all that, most of which was me mumbling Observe. That left me with nothing to do but talk to Dad for the rest of the way home. Thankfully, he spoke up first. "You okay kiddo? You've been mumbling to yourself for the past minute."

"Yeah, just thinking aloud."

"Is it about wanting to drop out of Winslow?" It would have been a lie, but I replied an affirmative regardless.

"I know that it sounds simple enough, but I just thought they might try to give us the runaround."

My dad chuckled at the half-truth. "I was thinking the same thing. If they don't do the paperwork, you could get accused of truancy."

"Yeah. I wouldn't put it past them after I saw the secretary put my Arcadia application into the shredder." I would have normally kept something like that secret to avoid angering him, but I felt like I could trust him to channel it.

There was a pause which he spent holding the wheel in a white knuckled grip. "That settles it. I don't like it, but I'm calling in a favor from Alan."

All other trains of thought screamed to a halt. If my dad was talking about the Alan I thought he was talking about, then things could get really awkward. "Isn't Mr. Barnes a divorce lawyer?"

"You are divorcing Winslow, right?" Shut down via dad joke. The horror. "We just need his help to write up a contract so we can make sure that they hold up their end of the deal. It might make things more complicated than I'd like them to be, but contracts are the only way to make sure you aren't screwed over in my experience. With what they let happen, I can't think of them as responsible or reasonable adults anymore."

I was a bit impressed. His voice was level the entire time, but his persisting grip was proof of his real feelings on the matter. I couldn't refute him at that point, especially while I still didn't know exactly what happened to put me in a coma. The thing I needed to know about was if Alan was aware of and complicit in how his daughter had been treating me. "Can we make sure Emma doesn't know? I don't want to worry her." I didn't want her to have any warning.

"That's fine." He looked like he had something more to say, but nothing came out. Things remained silent up until we got home. "I'll try to see if I can get ahold of Alan at his firm."

That would mean that I would have a chance to get rid of all my info boxes. The fact that I managed to get three skills through repeated actions was also of particular interest. If my hypothesis panned out, I wouldn't even need books to learn skills. A computer and an internet connection would suffice.

Luckily I had both, even though they weren't very impressive. First I started closing the info boxes until I stumbled across a surprise.

 **WSDM:** 62.5%

I know that said sixty the last time I looked. That made me think that I made a somewhat wise decision recently…and it jumped to 65.7%.

It was a lot to think about. Careful analysis improved my wisdom. I suspected that meant that I had to think about things and come to correct, or at least good, conclusions. I decided to get rid of all the pop-ups except for the ones about my six stats and my Status page. My VIGR was of particular interest. I decided to first check the world record for bench pressing by a normal human and found the total to be just over a thousand pounds. That would put his VIGR at 27, judging by my power. I checked the woman's record for posterity, and found her VIGR to be 15. The numbers looked so…small.

I decided then that it was time for my exercise plan. I first looked up how to do Tai Chi, choosing a PDF over a video.

 **You have acquired the Skill Book: Basic Martial Arts (Tai Chi). Do you want to learn this skill? Y/N**

"Hell no!" I was not going to destroy my computer for something I knew I could learn by practicing. I was done reading in seconds and spent just a minute practicing the forms.

 **A new Skill has been created through repeated action. Due to bitter work, the Skill Basic Melee Combat 1/5 (Tai Chi) has been created.**

It worked, much to my elation, but it rose three more questions. Two mattered, since I didn't feel like the change in the skill's name meant much. Two Observes would hopefully answer the other two.

 **Basic Skills:**

 _Basic Skills are Skills that have associated Techniques. A Basic skill will evolve after filling all Technique Slots. This will Unify all associated Techniques._

 **Technique Slots:**

 _The limit on the number of Techniques a Basic Skill can incorporate before evolving._

 **Techniques:**

 _Sets of actions that are inherent in a Basic Skill. Techniques are treated as separate Skills until Unified. Some Skills will be greatly impacted by their associated Techniques._

My head was starting to hurt from all the information that I'm still trying to comprehend. I got rid of the three then decided that I wasn't going to observe anything else until I tried out Dynamic Tension. I cleared some floor space, practiced a few motions, then flexed every muscle I could think to.

I was flat on my back and gasping for air in ten seconds. It would have been discouraging if not for the new pop-ups.

 **Due to strenuous effort, you gain 2-VIGR. VIGR=5**

 **Due to sustained activity, you gain 2-ENDR. ENDR=6**

 **Due to physical finesse, you gain 1-DEXT. DEXT=7**

The VIGR alert was a bit confusing until I remembered that it was just one added to the one earned back at the library. After that, I was excited that my DEXT improved too. I then looked at my status and found another happy surprise.

 **LV:** 3 (Next LV: 60/300)

Once I got over my good feelings, I face-palmed when thinking about how I couldn't breathe during those ten seconds reminded me to look up breathing techniques.

I needed ten of them to move on from Basic Restorative Breathing: Valsalva Maneuver, 3:2 Tempo Breath, Stabilizing Breath, Diaphragmatic Breathing, Equal Breathing, Abdominal Breathing, Alternating Nostril Breath, Skull Shining Breath, Progressive Relaxation, and Guided Visualization.

I had been breathing wrong my entire life. My breath didn't even catch in my throat when there was a sudden knocking at my door. "Taylor, I brought soup."

"Okay, come in." There wasn't much else I could say. I wasn't hungry, but I knew intellectually that not eating would cause all sorts of problems. I still wanted to get back to my research ASAP, so I hastily took the bowl of formerly canned chicken soup from dad and stuffed a spoonful into my mouth. It proved far too late to check the temperature before I ended up dropping the scalding bowl over my lap.

"Taylor!" my day yelled in panic. I scrambled out of bed and tried to shake off the heat and few bits of solid stuff. "Water…towel!"

I failed to parse out the meaning of his words before he grabbed my arm, pulled/carried me to the bathroom, turned on the cold water, handed me a towel, then left the room. While preparing to rinse off, I caught sight of my status page and another skill pop-up.

 **HP:** 128/150 (REGN: 8/min.×2)

 **A new Skill has been created through repeated action. Due to hyperthermic exposure, the Skill Heat Resistance has been created.**

That meant that I would be fully healed in just over one minute, six more scalding bowls of soup would Incapacitate me (which I couldn't argue if the pain was any indication), and getting injured was another way to get skills. It also meant that I didn't need too cool my skin, but I didn't see any reason not to rinse off. My dad was probably trying to find me a clean pair of pants/sweats to wear. He'll clean up my bed right after.

I switched the faucet over to warm water, took off my sweats, then washed them and my legs. Right on cue, a knock at the door and dad's voice alerted me to a pair of pajama pants balled up at the foot of the door. I wasted no time putting them on and went to help him out, using a stubborn glare to silence any protest. As we gathered up my sheets, he told me that Alan would be over later and that Emma was being kept in the dark. Apparently, Alan never heard about what was done to me and was just as appalled as everyone else had been. That much was a good sign.

After we had everything balled up, dad handed me a bottle of aloe vera, which I Observed.

 **Aloe Vera: 3**

 _×2 HP REGN from heat Damage._

That could have been useful if my health hadn't already regenerated. My stamina back up to 46, so I figured it was a good time to resume my physical training. I got rid of all the boxes about the physical stat points I earned then went to work.

This time, I was able to last a minute by relaxing on the inhale and flexing as I exhaled. The effort had evened up all my physical stats at eight each.

(196/300)

While my stamina regenerated, I decided to finally bite the bullet and visit Uber and Leet's website. I immediately skipped past their latest video, Tetris in the middle of New Year's fireworks, and moved on to the info on gaming genres. I quickly found that the RPG genre was what my power was based on. I narrowed things down to the Dungeon Crawler, MMO, and Action RPG genres. I prayed, for all that was holy, that I wasn't a Turn-Based or table top RPG character. Why they had table top on the list, I had no idea.

They even had information on how each game was played, which I consumed greedily. There were numerous mechanics that were shared between them, but there were a few I knew I had to start with. "Tutorial." Nothing.

"Pause." Nothing again.

"Menu."

 ** _Status_**

 ** _Skills_**

 ** _Inventory_**

 ** _Quests_**

 ** _Map_**

 ** _Party_**

 ** _Settings_**

"Jackpot." I already knew the basic concept behind. I decided to start with the one Uber and Leet's seemed to recommend that all gamers start with, so I tapped the Settings button.

There were a fair number of changes I could make, most about how pop-ups behaved. I could make EXP and Damage notices stop appearing, or trade them for a constantly present bar. I kept EXP the same, but set it so HP, MP, and SP were visible when not full. I also tried making all of my windows and pop-ups partially transparent. Once the mini-map and something about automatically picking up dropped items was turned on, I closed my settings page.

"Party."

 **Party:**

 **You have no Active Parties.**

 **You have no Inactive Parties.**

That was a fat load of nothing. "Observe."

 **Active Party:**

 _A group of up to five additional individuals. Certain distinct individuals will grant The Gamer a perk when in an Active Party. Active Party Members gain awareness of the Gamer's System, access to the Map, their Status, their personal Settings, The Gamer's Inventory, and Voice Chat. (Party Members do not gain EXP, Levels, Growth Correction, or Unspent Points.)_

"Growth Correction?"

 **Growth Correction:**

 _Granted by Gamer's Body. Balances visible Status Values across The Gamer's body and mind and streamlines development._

That didn't make much sense, but I bet it was a good thing. I decided that I would check out my skills next. The page was set up with icons with the name and description next to them.

 **Gamer's System (Active)(LV: Max):**

 _Quantifies and allows interfacing with all of The Gamer's capabilities._

 **Gamer's Body (Passive)(LV: Max):**

 _Grants a body like a game character. Immunity to physiological Status Effects except for Incapacitated, Unconscious, Terminal, and Deceased._

 **Gamer's Mind (Passive)(LV: Max)**

 _Promotes a calm and logical state of mind. Immunity to psychological Status Effects._

 **Speed Reading (Passive)(LV: 5/100)** 16%

 _Can read and comprehend Skill LV×30 words/second. (150/sec.)_

 **Observe (Active)(LV: 2/10)** 9%

 _1\. HP, MP, and general info.*_

 _2\. More recent/relevant info.*_

 _3\. SP and stats.*_

 _?_

 _?_

 _?_

 _?_

 _?_

 _?_

 _?_

 **Basic Melee Combat (Sustained)(TS: 1/5) 5 SP/sec.**

 _The ability to utilize one's own body as a weapon and weapons as if they are part of one's body._

 _(Tai Chi: [LV:1] Originally conceived of as a martial art, modern use is centered on improving health and demonstration.)_

 **Restorative Breathing (Passive)(LV: 1/100)** 97%

 _Physical activity cost 50% less SP/sec (Does not influence Skills). SP REGN + Skill Level×0.2%_

 **First Aid (Sustained)(LV: 1/20) 1 SP/sec.** 0%

 _Used to alleviate or cure the physiological Status Effects: Bleeding, 1st Degree Burned, 2nd Degree Burned, Sprained Joint, Broken Bone, Asphyxiation, Cardiac Arrest, Infected, ect._

 **Heat Resistance (Passive)(LV: 1/100)** 0%

 _Reduces damage from heat and flame by Skill Level×1%_

"Holy shit." There really wasn't much else to say to that. The real standouts were Observe, Heat Resistance, and the Gamer Skills. The info from First Aid was also illuminating. If i was immune to all but four physiological Status Effects, then my bones would never break and my skin would never scar. Immunity to psychological Status Effects could be even more amazing if it included Master powers. Leveling up Observe would finally give me a chance to see how my stats compare. Would LV 100 in Heat Resistance make me immune to fire? What other resistances were there? Could I get a flight power. Being like Alexandria like I always dreamed was right at my fingertips; I only had to work at it.

I jumped into the inventory next. The left side of the screen showed an outline of my body wearing my clothes. There seemed to be three slots for upper wear and two for lower, foot wear, and my hands each. There were also one for each ear, my head, my neck, each wrist, and my waist. With a finger, I touched the symbol for my shirt which caused some kind of wheel to pop up with only my shirt and an empty box being visible. I tapped the empty box and suddenly found myself glad that I was in the privacy of my room. Repeating my actions allowed me to bring my shirt back into existence.

That could be useful.

On the other side was a bunch of boxes that were completely nondescript and $0 on the top right corner. Following my hunch, I fished out my old piggy bank that I was still using and pulled out all the stray bills and coins. I pushed a quarter into the corner and was rewarded by my power eating the coin. $0 became $0.25 . I tapped the right arrow, causing it to jump straight to 25 cents. Confirming resulted in a cleaner, but not mint, coin materializing in the palm of my hand. I tried again with a $5 bill, and got back a bill that was as if it was never wadded up. The serial numbers were the same too. All together, I had $64.28.

At least no one could steal it from me.

Finally, I looked at my Quests. The page had four distinct tabs at the top saying Current, Succeeded, Failed, and Rejected, which were blue, green, yellow, and red respectively. The blue tab was showing with only one quest visible: Diligent Drop Out. I tapped it, read what it said, and felt my hesitation regarding the inclusion of Mr. Barnes fade away.

"Taylor! Alan will be here in thirty minutes! Are you ready?" I glanced at my quest again then closed out everything.

Thirty minutes…that gave me enough time to spend ten minutes draining my stamina and come into the meeting fully rested.

 **Restorative Breathing's level went up. Restorative Breathing is LV: 2.**

 **VIGR=11**

 **ENDR=12**

 **DEXT=9**

 **You have leveled up. Do you want to spend your Unspent Points?**

(122/400)

 _ ***L7e20: 2e22; 3e12; 1e20; 3e21; 723; 3e7***_

Two thousand revolutions around the binding sphere of POWER of passed. Two thousand years since she had last allowed any of her CHILDREN to draw upon the POWER she freely granted since ten thousand years before then.

It was a simple PLAN…allow them to draw upon the limitless power of her mind so they never realized the full value of tearing into her flesh. It would have worked for millennia, but her plans needed to change. PARASITES were incoming, and it would be her among all her SISTERS that will be the focus of their attention. If it were just her who was threatened, she would be left to fend for herself. The PARASITES were not to be so restrained. Instead, all SISTERS risked a premature death.

A PLAN had to be made, simple in concept but exceedingly complex in execution. She needed to draw in POWER from every source she could. All her SISTERS gave fully and freely…their lives were intertwined. Countless COUSINS gave meager portions of their POWER, but it was accepted gratefully. It would be prepared for the CHAMPION who will lead the fight against the PARASITES.

The CHAMPION would have to have an unassailable mind and an unbreakable body. There would have to be a way she can guide the CHAMPION and share her knowledge without stripping them of their free will. The CHAMPION would start weak and grow strong as needed. It could be no other way, lest the CHAMPION destroy her with POWER given, not earned.

The CHAMPION would need a way to develop their POWER outside of the PARASITES' gaze. The COUSIN that offered the most POWER offered a solution, one that pulls upon the imagination of the rest of her CHILDREN.

A millennium passed before warnings from distant OTHERS warned of the PARASITES' plan. They would Infect her CHILDREN and grant them another form of POWER. It took only seconds for her to include an ability to draw a portion of the POWER from the PARASITES'…HOSTS. All she needed was the SHAPE.

Nearly another millennium had passed when two of her CHILDREN developed a entertainment form, one that only needed a few additions to be perfect for the needed SHAPE. Refining would take decades.

Not one decade passed when one of the PARASITES had failed to land safely and was killed by two CHILDREN, one being a HOST. This was unexpected, and had her SISTERS asking for their POWER back. This left her with a choice, give it back or continue trying to form the POWER into the desired SHAPE. She asked for patience, uncertain that they were safe from the other PARASITE as its avatar crawled across her surface.

Ten revolutions later, and her CHILDREN had refined their version of the SHAPE, inspiring more improvements. Her SISTERS felt like they were owed back what was offered. The refined POWER was greater that what was originally collected, so she compromised dividing eighty percent of the POWER amongst her SISTERS, ten percent amongst her COUSINS, leaving only ten for her CHAMPION. They would start off weaker, and grow slower, but that would keep to the nature of the SHAPE.

Over 28 revolutions passed since the PARASITE's avatar showed itself before she finally finished SHAPING the POWER. It was time to find her CHAMPION. She had to choose one that would understand the SHAPE, one with a strong will, and a good heart. She had to choose quickly, for the PARASITE had similar tastes in willful HOSTS; and it was far easier to grant POWER to such a CHILD when their defenses are weakened. She had already lost twenty good candidates to the PARASITE.

The coldest months had come, bringing yet another stressed CHILD to her attention. This one had yet to cross the threshold, her righteous and sheer defiance fighting back the inevitable despair. When that moment came, she headed off the PARASITE'S SHARD and denied it. The CHILD will loose her memories and take time to acclimate to the POWER. She will sleep till then.

Upon waking, Taylor Anne Hebert would be her CHAMPION.

 ****ANWtP****

 ** _I've put a fair amount of research and thought into figuring out what her VIGR means and built the other stats around that idea. For this story, the upper limit of human VIGR, DEXT, and INTU is around 25. The limit for human ENDR, INTL, and WSDM is around 50. END and INTU are like this because no land animal can match our stamina but our instincts aren't quite up to par._**

 ** _Not gonna lie, I am just throwing numbers at the screen based loosely on her activities and how long it's been since she last improved a Skill._**

 ** _Also, I'd like for you guys to start thinking about which five combat styles she should learn. Tai Chi can be traded out. Try to think about the synergy, maneuverability of the styles, and power output. For example pure power styles will allow her to get around 0-7×VIGR damage while speedy styles will allow up to 0.2×DEXT (legs) and 0.5×DEXT (arms) attacks per second._**


	4. Chapter 4

_**To the Fanfiction guest who asked what Speed Reading did. It increases reading speed to 30secs×(Skill Level). This let's her grind INTL faster.**_

 ** _After reading a comment from Sapphire Cat, I decided to do a little more with Auto-Loot. She'll automatically pick up the items from a defeated foes like originally planned, but she'll also pick up any cash and crafting materials that had been sitting on the ground or in refuse bins for at least a minute. Auto-Loot will not trigger if another person has their eyes on the item in question._**

 _ **There was a lot of talk about combat styles, and we're still a few chapters out from them being relevant. What you guys should know is that the sky's the limit. Just assume that she'll be able to learn any style to ever exist.**_

 _ **So now, after wasting all my free time reading the works of others, here's chapter 4.**_

 *** _L9: E28; 24; 28; 15; 32; 12; 15_ ***

Sixteen hours passed since the meeting with Alan, (which earned me 5 INTU and 250 bonus EXP for recruiting him for my Quest.). During that time, I had figured out more aspects of my power. My immunity to physiological and psychological Status Effects seemed to include not needing to sleep. That gave me all night to train my stats, which came with some serious improvements. I learned that I will need a different way to really work on my DEXT and that contemplating my view on world events over how others present the news slowly improved my WSDM. I also learned that pushing my muscles to the limit of my VIGR with dynamic tension required more DEXT. Draining my stamina quickly improved my VIGR more while doing it slowly improved ENDR. The internet and my currently level 14 Speed Reading skill were perfect for improving my INTL (Reading anything improved the stat). And lastly, all my stats took longer to train the higher they got.

Through the process of bringing my INTL up to 32, I did a lot of research on local capes and capes that claimed to use magic. I learned that the latter group were full of themselves. None of the PDF's that I was able to find triggered my power's ability to develop skills, including a few by Myrddin. I wouldn't be surprised to find them void of Mana like everyone else I've seen so far. The real question was, why was I so special, and was I even a parahuman? Everything my power had told me about titles said that all parahumans were hosts to their powers. Did that mean they were infected somehow? What that meant for the world at large wasn't an idea I wanted to play around with until I had more information.

I also looked up a lot of info on how to properly be a hero, including bits about how dangerous hitting the head really was, soft spots that don't come with permanent damage,and other such advice. I made sure to spend my time wisely.

At that moment, I was looking at my inbox.

 **From: legendhairystyles**

Hey speed reader

I know we just met today, but I figured, no time like tomorrow

I'd love a chance to meet up with you at the boardwalk

Fugly's at noon

We can go shopping after lunch

I'll be really sad if you don't come

I might drown myself in a challenger

Pray that I survive

 _ **See you tomorrow**_!

I took a half hour to decide what to do. I thought I was over the betrayal that my last friend put me through, but it must have played some part in my delayed decision. The argument that I would have less time to train if I went out was defeated by knowing that I could move around semi-naturally while maintaining tension. It took remembering that human interaction seemed to improve my INTU to tip me over the edge.

I looked at my bare reflection and still felt floored by the young woman looking back at me. Gone was the paunch I had over my waist, and in it's place was a ripped six pack you could grate cheese on. My arms and legs were toned with dense muscles. I still didn't have anything that could be called a bust, but at least I had an ass. Even the way I stood was more attractive thanks to how the Tai Chi training was influencing my stance. To be honest, I would have been grateful to not look like a mountain of muscle like the strongmen I was allegedly equal to. This was much better than that.

I looked at my limited wardrobe and was glad that that all ten of my tops and my three pants were baggy numbers that would hide my newly developed build even without the help of my hoody. I still wasn't sure if I wanted to explain my powers to Dad or not, and being suddenly forced to was not high on my list. It should have come to no surprise that he was waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs. "Morning kid…do." His pause did not help with my nervousness. "Did I ever tell you how much like your mother you look?"

A light blush reached my cheeks. It had been years since he's been able to mention mom with a smile on his face, and my recent development bridged the gap between us. It was as if my dad was feeling better overnight. I didn't want any worry about me being a cape to put a end to his good mood. Maybe I'd tell him when he starts getting worried about me being out at odd hours…after making sure that I would be really hard to kill.

"Morning dad. Can I go to the Boardwalk today?" He flinched at the thought of letting his daughter go out one day after she woke up from a coma, and I flinched at his flinching.

"Can you tell me why you want to go?"

Thankfully, there was no need for excuses or lies there. "Kendra, from the library…she wants to hang out with me today. I promise that I'll come straight home if I feel tired, and I won't be alone. Please."

That left the moment of truth up to him. Rather than answer simply, he walked up to me and pulled me into a firm hug. "I'm so proud of you little owl. Go get'm."

I hugged him back, but pulled away when I heard his back crack. "Dad! Oh God, I'm so…"

He put a pause to my rant with his palm. "I'm fine, best hug I had in ages honestly." He did a few stretches and shivered while I felt giddy at proof of my strength and subsequently promised myself to control that strength in the future. "Wow! Where did that come from?"

Me being as strong as an Olympic weight lifter wasn't something I wanted to tell him, so I went with a half truth. "I think that I feel better than ever."

"I think I believe it. Hold on a second." He pulled out his wallet and handed me a hundred dollar bill. "Get yourself something nice Taylor. With Alan helping us out, we can afford it." It was impressive that he was able to say that with a smile on his face.

I couldn't refuse his offer, so I made my way to the Boardwalk with…$164.92 in my inventory? 64 cents coming from out of nowhere was unexpected, but appreciated. I still had nearly an hour left before I had to be at the Boardwalk, so I decided that it would be a good opportunity for a run. I kept my arms and core flexed while letting my shoulders move more freely. The stamina costs for my sprinting speed seemed to go as high as ten per second, which I could keep up for under thirty seconds. It was shocking how suddenly that cost dropped off once I was down to jogging speeds and stopped flexing my muscles. With careful management of my movements, I was able to match my cost to my regeneration. Part way, I began using Observe on everything I came by and telling the pop-ups to close on the following breath. Altogether, It earned me quite a bit by time I finally reached my destination. Looking at how the info was displayed, the extra time spent fiddling with the settings overnight felt worth the time.

 **ENDR+1=29** (66-EXP)

 **Restorative Breathing is level 5**

 **DEXT+2=17** (82-EXP)

 **Observe is level 3**

Kendra was already waiting for me. She wore tight fitting jeans and a pink windbreaker over a white embroidered sweater. I Observed her from a distance.

 **Kendra Sonders: LV: 3**

 **HP:** 200/200

 **SP:** 80/80

 **MP:** N/A

 **VIGR:** 5

 **ENDR:** 9

 **DEXT:** 7

 **INTL:** 16

 **WSDM:** 4

 **INTU:** 11

 _An intelligent and cheerful girl, but many dismiss her as a pretty ditz. Those who get acquainted to her know differently, and she likes it that way. She is happiest meeting people that can see past her surface behavior._

"Taylor, you're here!" She ran up to me and pulled me into an affectionate hug. "I get to live."

I shook my head at her holding onto that joke while internalizing what I read about her. "So, what are we going to do?"

"Well…first we have lunch, then I ask you what _you_ want to do. You'll say something like not having any idea, so I'll drag you over to get some real clothes. I try to bring up why you didn't have any friends yesterday while we try stuff on. Then we spend hours window shopping and talking about boys, capes, cape boys, and whatever else we can think of."

"O…kay then." I didn't have much of a response to her onslaught of options, so I followed her to the restaurant/bar/shack that was Fugly Bob's, home to the greasiest burgers in the bay. Every Brocktonite has eaten there before, and those with any sense waited a year to do it again.

When it came time to put in our orders, I was thinking about a minor aspect of my power that I had the perfect chance to test out. It wouldn't be too hard to explain either. The only real risk was if I was wrong. There was only one way to find out. "Give me, The Challenger." The waiter and Kendra both gave me incredulous looks. Even pushing 5'7", I was still a beanpole of a teen whose weight I actually didn't know yet.

I made a mental note to check what that was once I got back home.

"Are you sure Miss?"

Half-truths were working so far. "The last thing I ate was a bowl of soup last night, and I ran here." My still recovering stamina and the fact that I wasn't wearing my coat helped sell my story. That got a shrug from our waiter.

 **Quest Alert!**

 **You have decided to take on Fugly Bob's Challenger burger. Finish it in 45 minutes or else.**

 **Success:** +100-EXP; Your photo on the wall

 **Failure:** Pay $35

 **Rejection:** N/A

100 EXP sounded like a good bonus reward for what I was about to do. I was glad this quest was automatically accepted.

While I mused over my new quest, Kendra got a large order of fries. After a few seconds, she placed her hand over mine. "I just want to say, you are so brave." If not for the grin she was failing to keep off her face, I might have bought that line. "I will never forget your sacrifice."

What followed was a battle of wills, her near-grin verse my expression of neutrality. With naught but a raised eyebrow, her facade was shattered. It didn't take much of her laughing to get me chuckling alongside her. "If you don't finish in time, I'm helping you eat it."

That threw me off for a bit. "Isn't that when someone offers to help pay for it?"

She just raised a knowing eyebrow. "Do you want me to help you pay?" She had me there, so I could only shake my head. This was something that I decided to do myself, damn the consequences. It was too bad that those consequences included the attention of every patron around. If only they didn't have to loudly announce every attempt but it wouldn't be much of an attraction if they didn't draw attention to it at every opportunity.

The Fugly Bob's Challenger was four one-pound slabs of 'beef' nestled between two pounds of bun, cheese, and fixings, including a large order of fries. It was not the kind of thing anyone would expect a skinny white girl to be able to eat, but I knew that there was a precedent for skinny girls winning eating challenges.

Once they set the monstrous meal before me, I had 45 minutes to eat all of it down to the last fry, and I had sixteen people rooting for me. I decided to put on a show and get some info in one go. "Observe!" They cheered.

 **Fugly Bob's Challenger:**

 _A heart stopping, gut wrenching, food coma inducing bad idea. Eat it in 45 minutes to waive the cost and earn a photo on the wall._

 _+40 HP REGN/min. for the next 3 hours. Can cause Acid Reflux, Indigestion Bloating, Food Coma, Stamina Damage, Clogged Blood Vessels, Asphyxiation, Cardiac Arrest, etc._

Those all looked like physiological problems, so I ignored them and began eating at a steady pace. It took around five minutes before I started seeing drops in my stamina every time I swallowed a bite. That must have been the Stamina Damage. From there, it was childs play to carefully use up to 25 SP per minute. By time the last fries entered my mouth, I had ten minutes left on the clock and thirteen SP remaining. I would not have been able to complete it if not for all my overnight training.

When I broke my attention away from my plate, I was assaulted by cheers and clapping from dozens of people who came by just to watch the show. For me, the challenge boiled down to simple math. But to them, I achieved something only a select few had been capable of. Even with my powers, it felt like something I could be proud of because I still * _earned_ * the stats I needed to do it. It was a drastic shift from what I was used to.

After things quieted down, I was directed to pose near my empty plate so they'd have a picture of me on the wall. A more cynical part of me thought that it was a way to keep track of big eaters so they didn't try to return for a free meal.

 **WSDM+1=13** (34-EXP)

And cynicism wins the day.

After five minutes of congratulations, Kendra and I were on our way, me with a comfortable weight in my stomach. "Question."

I blinked. "Yes?"

"Do you worry about gaining weight?" That was an easy no. Even before my powers, it took a year of lethargy to gain a little paunch. She sounded out a 'dignified' raspberry when I said no. "Lucky you."

"If it makes you feel better, that might play hell with my skin."

"Why would _that_ make me feel better. I'll still have to be careful of how much I eat and you get pizza faced. That's only funny if you're a bitch. You're not a bitch, are you?"

I thought about the three bitches who were half the reason I wanted to drop out, and knew that I was not going to be anything like them. "No. I'm not."

"Then we can be friends, and if we're going to be friends, we'll need a better way to get in touch. Follow me!" In moments, we found ourselves at a mobile phone vendor. I felt another bout of muted nervousness, but couldn't justify not having a phone anymore. "How much do you have?"

"160 dollars."

There was a hissing sound of her breath passing through her teeth. "That's a small budget. Prepaid flip phones it is!" She practically dragged me into the store, but she and Observe made the process of finding a $25 prepaid phone quick and painless. So long as I didn't use it much, it should be much cheaper than a plan. I was feeling pretty good about the whole deal up until I remembered that I left my money in my inventory. "Bathroom."

The cashier looked at me funny, but I had someone to back me up against her scrutiny. "That Challenger finally getting to you, huh?"

"You ate the Challenger?"

"She beat the Challenger?"

That got an appreciative whistle with only a hint of pity. "Okay then, follow me." The photogenic brunette led me to a back room restroom which I used to pull out all of my…$166.86? I nearly vocalized my confusion when I saw that the boxes were holding paper, plastic, aluminum, rubber, and steel scrap. I only knew that much because I Observed each one. They were all listed as crafting materials.

It wasn't a mystery that I could solve by staring at it, so I pulled all my money out, faked flushing, washed my hands, remembered to tense my muscles lightly, then returned to the counter to find Kendra handing me a receipt. There was no entitlement from her expression, more of a curiosity towards what I would do next. I decided to give her the $27.25.

She gave me a smile and nod then skipped off without a word. It made me wonder if I passed some kind of test, which was made weirder by how we went over me wanting to pay for myself earlier. I continued wondering up until Kendra pulled me into a seat at the nearest bus stop. "Where are we going?"

"We're going somewhere else to get you some clothes."

I tilted my head at that. "Why not go to the Boardwalk boutiques?"

"You're not ready for that yet." I felt affronted for a second from that. "No offense, but Boardwalk people are mean if they think you can't afford their stuff and are even meaner when they know."

"So I need to…"

"Start small and work your way up."

"Not how I was going to put it, but close enough."

"Yep. That, and you only have $130. That'd get you a nice pair of sunglasses."

"So where are we going?"

"Goodwill silly. They won't charge you an arm and a leg. You kinda need those to go places." She snorted at her own joke. "It's a good place to get clothes if you have the time to look for them, and we have all day."

That sounded like a much better idea than her original one. I was feeling pretty good about things up until Kendra went totally silent and pulled out her phone like many teenagers do. I doubted that she was suddenly rethinking us spending the day together, but I was expecting her to strike up some sort of conversation before deciding that something else was more worthy of her attention. The silence was a little stifling after a few minutes, so I tried starting a conversation myself. "Why are you helping me?"

"Why not? We're friends after all." And with that, we lapsed into another short silence. After a minute or so of watching her do whatever on her phone, I realized that I wouldn't be able to contribute to the shopping trip if I didn't know what to look for, so I asked her.

"Well you're tall and thin, so you automatically have great legs, but you want to try to make yourself look shorter sometimes. Maxi dresses are a must. Skinny jeans and giant waist belts too. Knee high boots if you want to buy shorts. Skirts reaching your knees to go with anything else you want to put your feet in. We need to look for stuff that pops, but no vertical stripes. Horizontal is good though. For make-up? You have a great complexion, which is good because makeup on pimples is bad. Definitely lipstick; eyeshadow and mascara you can do without. Lastly, we need to find stuff that hasn't had a visit from the moth fairy. Holes around the knees are fine, but everything else needs to be in one piece. We don't have a big budget, so the bargain bins are our first targets. If that doesn't work out, we can try the outlet a few miles out. Sounds good?"

"What? Where did all that come from?"

She turned her phone towards me, which was on an online article about how Goodwill handled clothing. I thought about that for a few moments before realizing that she didn't just look up Goodwill, but what kind of clothes I would look good in. It would explain the word vomit, though the bits about makeup sounded specifically tailored to me. It was a far cry from how even pre-bitch Emma was like. Emma's fashion knowledge seemed entirely focused on things that she liked and looked good in. Thinking back on it, half my wardrobe before highschool was almost a mirror of hers.

In comparison, Kendra seemed entirely focused on what I would look good in. Even without me earning any stat points so far, I felt like I was getting to know what a good friend should be like. Something like that wasn't a waste of my time.

Of course it was then that my super powered intellect decided to finally remind me that nothing was stopping me from exercising in public. So long as I toned down the intensity, I shouldn't draw more than a cursory glance. If someone who knew me personally asked, I could tell the truth. Kendra seemed like the type to be impressed by such behavior, and it's not like anyone will realize what kind of forces that I was exerting upon myself. I decided to start with my abs and work my way down, reducing the intensity whenever my limbs started shaking.

Before I knew it, we settled into having an unofficial staring contest. It didn't get awkward for me until she zoned out. No one has truly been stared at until they've sat under the scrutiny of someone who isn't really looking at you. Before I could snap her out of it, the bus stopped, jolting Kendra out of her trance. She grabbed my arm and bulldozed through the departing crowds with me in tow. I had to jog to keep up with her mad dash to the Goodwill building.

She split from me almost immediately, leaving instructions to only look for skinny jeans and anything with colorful patterns. Observe proved its worth all over again thanks to Stamina translating into how damaged a garment was. It also told me what the price was, tax included. Shopping for clothes was never easier or cheaper. I managed to gather enough to want to use my Inventory to store them before Kendra returned with enough clothes to fill her own shopping cart, all without powers. "Wow. First speed reading, now super shopping. Are you sure you're not a cape?

"I am not a cape." I wasn't lying there either. Technically, someone isn't a cape by the slang definition unless they've gone out under an alias and/or in costume.

"Do you have powers?" I tried giving her my most incredulous glare. "I'm not hearing a no."

"You're not going to hear a yes either."

We stared each other down for a few seconds before falling into chuckling fits. "This is fun, and we haven't started trying clothes on yet."

"Joy of joys." I was not looking forward to that part of our excursion, but like every other intense emotion which would have normally had me running for the hills, my anger and trepidation were muted. This left only my strong desire to not let Emma dictate my future. It was amazing what some logic and a lack of detrimental emotions could do for someone's thinking process. I thanked Gamer's Mind and Kendra both for the Skill the amateur fashion show earned me.

 **Basic Self-Presentation: (Sustained)(TS: 1/5)**

 _The behavior that changes how others perceive you._

 _(Fashion: [LV:4] The use of clothing and hair styles to appear more attractive or break up your body shape._

Looked at another way, it was a Skill that could be used to make me unrecognizable. Nothing else could be better for a hero aspiring to keep their identity secret. Learning how I could change clothes instantly was just icing on the cake; though I had to make sure to take the clothes out of my Inventory, lest I become a thief.

I was having fun jumping from outfit to outfit, using my improving judgement to decide which combinations to show off to Kendra. She wasted no time commenting on my physique, which reminded me that I wanted to hide it. Her idea of a compromise was giant belts, scarfs, and coats that all made me look smaller. I could only talk her into one baggy outfit and tops that billow out, earning me another point and level on top of the point dynamic tension earned me.

 **VIGR+1=25** (58-EXP)

 **INTU+1=16** (40-EXP)

The new settings were definitely worth it.

At the end of it all, I came away with four new outfits, an exercise outfit, two belts, and three massive satin scarves. The total cost ran up to $143.79, bringing my total funds down to 59¢ even after Kendra chipped in. I tried not to think about where the additional 59¢ came from or how Kendra insisted on paying for the rest. I would normally think that I wasted my money, but everything I knew about myself seemed to point towards me not needing money for anything other than clothes. Until I figured out how my power was spontaneously generating money, I couldn't afford to turn any assistance down. Giving in had nothing to do with her begging to pay for the rest.

 *** _L3: 5; 9; 7; 16; 4; 11_ ***

Taylor had powers, just like Carlos, Chris, Denis, and Dean. (Shadow Stalker didn't go to Arcadia as far as she could tell.) It wasn't hard for her to figure out who was who since Kendra knew what to look for and what not to look for. When accused of being a cape, parahumans had all sorts of reactions. It's the normal people who look confused. Capes also had a sorrowful intensity that Taylor had in spades. If it was just that, Kendra could have been happy with just being a friend, but Taylor needed more.

She needed a best friend.

Figuring out how to actually do that for the girl was proving to be a challenge. The whole shopping trip was more Kendra going by the cliche of what two teen girls are supposed to do to get to know each other. Even in the face of frequent silence, she was having fun. She wouldn't soon forget personally witnessing a skinny girl eat the Challenger with ten minutes to spare.

Kendra thought back on every strange thing she'd seen Taylor do in an attempt to figure out her power. So far, Taylor seemed to have some kind of power that made her able to do things faster than normal. It didn't sound like a strong power until she applied the concept to everything Taylor did. The tower of lean muscle Kendra was shopping with was not the same as the stick thin girl she hugged tightly 24 hours prior. If it's anything like Uber and Victor, Taylor had some potential.

That still left her with the conundrum of truly befriending Taylor. Capes all seemed to prefer to talk about cape stuff with other capes while trying to keep all the non-capes out of the loop. Kendra couldn't be a real best friend until they talked about everything. There were a lot of capes that should be able to do a lot more than they do, and no friend of Kendra's was going to be one of them. She was also going to make sure Taylor had at least a little bit of what a normal girl should be like. "Alright, next is makeup."

"I thought you said I didn't need makeup."

"Nope," she said with that popping sound she loved.

"Oh yeah. You said something about makeup over pimples not being good."

"Yep." It was nice of Taylor to bother remembering that detail. Kendra hadn't. Fast memory recall? She wondered if Taylor had any relation to Velocity. Powers worked like that sometimes. "I know a good place a few blocks from here." She grabbed Taylor by the hand and dragged her in the desired direction. There was a little resistance, but Taylor let herself be dragged along.

It was too bad that it was too soon to seriously dive into the topic of capes. Barring some minor disaster, getting Taylor to talk will take time, maybe a week. Her line of thought cut off when Taylor jerked her into a sudden stop. It was really jarring, and there didn't seem to be a good reason why.

Sure, there was a man, at the end of the alley, walking towards them, with an unpleasant smile, a menacing gait, and pulling out a knife.

…

Apparently Taylor was fast on the uptake…or was that supposed to be quick? She could think about that later. The bigger problem was that the winter sun was setting, and the surrounding streets were mostly deserted. "What do you think you're doing nigger bitch." And he was a Nazi who decided not to look like one. That wasn't fair.

"Get out of here." The iron like voice drew both of their attention to Taylor. Her new friend placed herself between her and the Nazi.

He seemed to smile more at that. "Oh, I get it. You're a dyke race-traitor. Don't think being white's gonna save you."

Kendra's mind decided that it was a good time to remind her that she hadn't confirmed her theory on Taylor. The may-be-a-cape dropping her bag of clothes attracted her full attention. Most would see it as just a bag, but Kendra saw something she could distract him with and give them both a chance to escape.

She had a simple plan: grab the bag, throw it, tackle his legs, roll away, run. He was pretty close, so she made the first move. "Bitch!" She flinched at the guttural yell and looked up to realized that the Nazi had a knife throwing hobby. She put her arms up in a slapdash attempt at self-defense

The pain she expected never came, only the sound of feet scuffling across asphalt, the thumps of fists against flesh, and the thump of a body hitting the ground.

[HP-9]

(50×2)

(100×2)

"Fucking." There was one more thump, then silence.

(75×2)

(146-EXP)

Kendra let her arms fall and saw her friend towering over the unconscious racist. She had imagined being in similar situations before, but none of those took into account how imposing someone who easily beat another someone unconscious could be. She watched Taylor turn around and pull the knife out of her hoody, from her left breast specifically. "Kendra, are…are you okay?"

"Yeah." She tried to ignore her trembling and the missed opportunity to say yep. "You're not bleeding?"

"No. He barely nicked me. Thrown knives aren't as dangerous as people think apparently."

"You _are_ a cape."

There was a pregnant silence before Taylor sighed in defeat. "Yeah. Normal girls don't beat up grown men in three hits."

"What did you do to him?"

"A punch to the solar plexus, a kick to his liver, and another punch when he was down." Taylor stared at her for a second before looking back at the man. "We should call the cops and…talk."

Talking: that sounded like a good plan.

* _ **ANWtP**_ *

 ** _The underlined text is invisible to the focus character. I don't want to use invisa-text since it doesn't translate well outside of SB and SV._**

 _ **I don't have else much to say except about the Nazi. He was Level six with his knife having a Threat Bonus of three. If nothing good to read comes along, the next chapter shouldn't take as long.**_


	5. Chapter 5

_**I've made a minor change in chapter three so that Taylor's equipment slots is more representative of everything that an RPG character would wear. The full list is Weapon L, Weapon R, Upper underwear, Upper wear, Upper outerwear, Belt, Lower underwear, Lower wear, Socks, Shoes, Earring L, Earring R, Headwear, Necklace, Bracelet L, Bracelet R, Ring L, Ring R.**_

 _ **I had originally planned for this to be my shortest chapter. That plan didn't work out. There was just a lot of stuff I wanted to make happen and no good place to stop the chapter before hitting 8K words.**_

 _ **Here's chapter 5**_

 _ **L9: E554; 25; 29; 17; 32; 13; 16**_

I was at a bit of a loss for what to do. I toyed with the idea of saying psych and trying to spin a tale about how I was some kind of martial arts prodigy (which would be difficult to sell with my LV: 3 technique in Tai Chi if she had so much as a cursory knowledge of the style), but it felt like the ruse was in a transient state _before_ I punched Mr. White out. I nearly smiled at the ludicrousness of how he had his surname legally changed.

There were more important things to think about at the moment, such as anticipating Kendra's questions and deciding what answers I wanted to give. The first question was obvious, but from the truth would come an endless stream of questions, many I wouldn't have an answer for or even an idea on how to answer.

The question I needed to ask myself was if I wanted anyone to know what my power was, let alone understand what it was capable of. I needed to look again at the pros and cons of my situation. I still wasn't 100% sure on trusting her, but I felt curious about how she would interpret the foundation of all my powers. I waited for her to finish her call and checked to make sure that Mr. White was still unconscious before I posed my question. "Kendra, did you want to be friends with me just because I have powers?"

She tilted her head at me quizzically, as if something I said did not compute. "What kind of person does something for one reason. That's stupid."

It wasn't a denial, not exactly. Some part of my former self tried to reject her, tried to boil down her motivations to that one reason, but I already knew that Kendra was not so simple a person. What she was was honest in her intent, if not earnest. I doubted she really understood _how_ to do earnest. "So, your turn I guess."

"What are your powers?"

I saw that one coming from a mile away, and decided that keeping a secret from her felt like more trouble than it would be worth, and that her initial reaction was something I wanted to see. "My power is called The Gamer: I am a living video game character."

Her eyes clouded slightly as her brow furrowed. "Really, I thought it was something cool like being faster at **everything** : like getting stronger faster, learning stuff faster…"

I thought to interrupt her early on, but my jaw dropped as she she continued to list more and more things I could probably make into skills if they weren't already inherent. I held my palm out to her to forestall some of her more mundane or eclectic ideas. "I think my power can do most of that, but better."

"Better?"

"Yeah. I can improve myself faster than a normal person can, and I'm not limited by what is physically possible." I decided to leave my explanation at that until what I said sunk in, and tried to ignore how she pulled me into her pace without effort.

I could see her mulling over the information before going wide eyed. "You're like Dauntless, except with your body." My mind as well, but there was no need to elaborate.

I nodded and checked again to see if there was any other conscious people around. "I can do this too." My inventory, which I never closed, was moved to my side by my will, putting it in the perfect position to receive the giant bag of clothes. Everything that was inside the bag disappeared into the equipment half of my inventory while the plastic bag disappeared into my stack of plastic.

"Wait…"

"No I am not nor have I ever been Circus."

"I wasn't going to ask that, but good to know. I just thought you'd want to stop sharing before the cops show up." I blinked once then blushed when I finally noticed the sounds of sirens in the background. "So, what's our story?"

And that was another time out of many that I've been caught off guard in one way or another that day. "No clue. Ideas?"

She thought about it for only a few seconds. "Okay. Let's run for it." I stood dumbfounded after she turned away from the sirens, grabbed my arm, and booked it. "Come on!"

My brain finally rebooted and convinced my legs to propel me to her side. We weren't running for long before Kendra was too winded to keep going. After my three-hop-stop, I waited for her to catch her breath. "What was that about? I thought we were going to wait for the cops."

"I thought we had a cover story."

"I didn't think I would need one yet! I'm not sure we needed one now!" There was a moment of silence before she broke into a fit of laughter that infected me seconds later. I didn't really get it, but something about having how unprepared I was thrown in my face and coming out mostly unscathed coupled with our teenage behavior was hilarious to me. Sure, the Nazi would probably remember me, bit I doubted that someone who's greatest feat was beating up some random mook was going to draw too much attention. I only had to make sure I didn't make a habit out of it.

And get that Self-Presentation Skill fully formed ASAP.

Before long, Kendra managed to convince me to follow her home. She lived in one of the downtown apartments. Fortunately for my peace of mind, it was within the areas that were frequently patrolled by heroes. We ran into Mrs. Sonders, who had no problem with me spending the night so long as I let my parents know. I didn't correct her minor assumption. Still, calling my dad to make sure that he knew that I would be okay could only be a good idea. He was fine with it, and even sounded happy for me.

Kendra's room was not what I was expecting, with the wall paper being a rainbow of colors that skipped over yellows and greens. There was a dichotomy of masculine and feminine themes that bisected the two sides that contradicted the lack of distinctly male paraphernalia. "Yep. I used to room with my big brother. He's been at college part-time for the last five years. That's the sleepover bed these days."

A sleepover. It had been well over a year since I last had one, and only a few hours since I had a thought linked to Emma. I had to learn how to keep those thoughts under control if I wanted to truly trust Kendra. She was obviously waiting for me to decide what to talk about next, so I decided to start with things I didn't know about my power; such as how $232.35 ended up in my inventory. I wasn't really complaining, but I'd like to know where it was coming from.

"So, what do you think?" I asked my new friend.

She hummed for a while, even going into what I thought to be Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, but was actually the ABC's. "Why don't you try taking it all out."

"Okay." In moments, all of my mystery money was out and sorted by denomination.

"That's a lot of pennies." She wasn't wrong about that. I could see a stack of over 150 pennies off to my right. If only my power generated more useful currency, I wished. "Maybe your power is picking up spare change." Or it could be that. It would explain why there was so much change. Most people were pretty quick to pick up any bills after all. I hoped that I wasn't stealing from people's wallets.

I snapped my fingers. "The mugger. The rest is his. It must have happened when I knocked him out."

Kendra snorted. "Mugger mugged by a teenage girl."

I just smiled and shook my head. I didn't get to ponder how that happened before the reason already hit me. "Settings." I scrolled through the list until coming to Auto-Loot. "Observe." As I hoped, it gave me more than the basic information.

 **Auto-Loot:**

 _Automatically adds any Consumables, Materials, or Currency from defeated foes to the Inventory. Includes unobserved and Discarded Materials and Currency within a 10 foot radius._

"Observe."

 **Discarded Items:**

 _Items that have been left undisturbed for at least a minute in a public or owned area._

"Whatcha doing?" I spared her a glance before explaining how my power let's me learn about certain key words just by using my Observe Skill. She asked about Observe and my Skills too, so I gave her a brief overview.

"So this Observe Skill, it's like some kind of mini-power?" I nodded. "And you have other ones?" I nodded again. "What are they?" I hesitated for a moment before ultimately deciding that I've already told Kendra a lot about myself, so I told her about my seven Skills, excluding my Gamer Skills. "I knew it! You can be really good at stuff like Uber and Victor are." I grimaced at the comparison. "Yeah, they're villains, but they've been around for years with powers that only make them good at stuff. How do you get your skills."

I sighed, essentially conceding to both her point and her request for me to tell her more. "I got most of my Skills from practicing them. I got First Aid Skill from…" I paused for a moment to consider how I was going to put it. "Well, from letting my power eat some pamphlets."

That one managed to confuse her for a moment. "Your power…eats pamphlets."

"Skill Books actually."

"Would magazines work?"

"I don't see why not," I said with a shrug, which is how I ended up faced with a box that was overflowing with fashion and celebrity related magazines. A lot of money would have gone into a collection like that. "Are you sure? I don't think that I'll be able to give them back.

She waved her hand at me dismissively. "Silly Tay-Tay. They're just some magazines to me. They are super powers for you. I'll bet Uber and Victor do stuff like this too." I agreed with only half of her argument this time. After all, I doubted that Uber and Victor cared all that much about fashion related Skills, up until I started getting Skill Book info. The Cosmetics, Posture, Acting, Techniques for my Self Presentation Skill came from makeup, modeling, and celebrity magazines respectively. I got the Vocalization Technique from a buried magazine with Canary on the cover. I also learned the Textiles Skill, which revealed a Crafting option for my inventory. I also learned that Skill Books didn't stop at giving me a Skill. So long as the book contained new information, it would contribute to the Skill's Level. After consuming half of Kendra's magazines, my Self Presentation Skill was Level 6 (which I was immensely thankful for), Textiles was Level 3. I also got Alchemy, Carpentry, and Meditation from magazines on homemade cosmetics, stage design, and a 70's inspired magazine. The remaining magazines survived thanks to them not having anything in them not covered by the others.

Through the entire session, Kendra sat in wide eyed silence after saying "Ooo, shiny," once. "What else can you do?"

I gave the information a minute to settle in my mind before answering. "Well, there's one thing I want to test that I couldn't do alone. Create Party."

 _What would you like to name your Party?_

"Wait, your power can make parties."

I smirked at her question. "Not exactly. What do you think would be a good name for our party?" I saw her eyes light up like stars before turning my attention unto my power once more and taking a cleansing breath to push away my mild frustration.

 _Do you want the Party's name to be "Not Exactly. What do you think would be a good name for our party?"_ **Y/N**

 **Restorative Breathing is level 6**

I tapped No on one window and dismissed the other. "Let's call it Super Party."

That was as good of a name as anything else. "Super Party." I tapped Yes, bringing another window to life.

 _Say "Invite (Name) to (Party Name)" to add Party Members._

I shrugged, glad that my power decided not to be weird twice in a row. "Invite Kendra Sonders to Super Party." I chuckled when she flinched back from the window that popped up right in front of her. She recovered quickly and tapped what I suspected to be the Yes. A new window appeared at the corner of my vision.

 **Kendra Sonders Level: 3**

 **HP: 200/200**

 **MP: N/A**

 **SP: 80/80**

[Voice Chat (On/ **Off** )] [Dismiss] [Promote]

 **[Privacy] [Mute:** On/ **Off]**

I was about to start Observing things again before Kendra's voice brought my attention back to her. "Cool."

"Try bringing up your Menu."

"How do I do that?" There was a mystified quality to her voice. I couldn't fault her for that. She was using powers, even if they weren't hers. That didn't stop me from speaking in the deadest deadpan I could manage. "Say Menu."

She promptly did so. "Cool. Voice activated powers. … Inventory." After a second of consideration, she began stuffing the money that we organized into the pocket space.. A quick glance at my own Inventory showed that my $232.35 was once again safely stored. Without warning or preamble, Kendra's phone showed up in one of the boxes. I pulled it back out and looked up at her confused expression. She wasn't confused for long after she saw me waving her phone around. "Cool."

"Can you say anything other than cool?" I asked her while tossing the phone to her.

She caught it deftly. "Nope, cause then I'd want to pull out the thesaurus, and neither of us want that."

I snorted. "I'll take your word for it."

"Let's see what else I can do. … Map." "Neat, I can see my apartment from here. There's even this little blue/red dot saying that we're there."

"Really?" I brought up my own map and saw that yes, there was a half red/half blue dot over my location when it was purely red the day before. I looked up at Kendra to see her walking around the room while fiddling with her Map. She was pouting. "What's wrong?"

"I'm the blue one. I was hoping that I was the red one."

"How can you tell?"

"I zoomed in, see." She punctuated her response by turning her Map to me and pinching it. When she spread her fingers, the Map zoomed out until the two dots turned back into one red/blue dot. "It's just like my touch screen phone."

"Huh?" That was good to know. "Let's see if I can change my color."

"Just tap your dot."

I shrugged and did as she said. The result was a small Settings Window. It was limited to things relating to the Map, including the color of my dot. "Okay. I'll be black then."

"You can't be black. Black is boring."

I tilted my head at her. "Then what color would you prefer oh fashionable one."

 **You have given a Party Member a Title.**

 _You have acquired the Perk: Fashion Mogul._

Both of us were struck dumb by our sudden pop-ups. I Observed the Perk.

 **Perk: Fashion Mogul:**

 _Improves the Skill Growth Rate of Self Presentation, Crafting: Textiles, etcetera by 3%._

I read it in less than 1/10th of a second then took in what the perk would mean for my ability to disguise myself. 3% didn't sound like much, but for a skill I planed on making frequent use of, it was a valuable thing.

I spent my time thinking about how I could exploit the ability, long enough for Kendra to finish reading her window and come over to read mine. It was a surprise when she commandeered my hand for changing my color to a dark chocolate color. I didn't care either way, but felt compelled to ask. "Why brown?"

"That's not brown. That's _hot chocolate,_ " she said with a punctuating cock of her hips. I did my best not to react to her ridiculous display, and felt Self Presentation activate. It seemed to help present the air of someone who was very unimpressed. "Aww, I thought that was funny."

I let her stew for a second before I cracked a smile. "So was that." Her dropped jaw sealed the deal for me, and it didn't take long for us to share a fit of laughter. "So, why _hot chocolate_?"

"Because it's your eye color." That got a raised eyebrow from me. Before I could respond further, she suddenly perked up from happy to excited. "Oh that's too cool."

"What's too cool?" I followed her pointing finger to her brownish Party Window with my info in it, which I hadn't paid much attention to but remembered being red. As Kendra altered her settings, the blue Party Window holding Kendra's info shifted to a light red color. "We're color coded."

"Yep. … Hey, do you think that the Voice Chat works like a phone? I'm gonna test it out." She tapped her Party Window and left the room. I repeated the former action for myself and waited. I didn't have to wait long.

It started with some indistinct mumbling from who I suspected to be Kendra's mother. Then she spoke. _"We've been experimenting."_ It took a moment for those words to settle in my mind. _"Yeah, we met yesterday."_ A pit of dread bubbled up from within at her matter-of-fact tone. _"Of course I trust her. Taylor's really smart, nice, and cuter than she thinks she is."_ The feeling wasn't being suppressed, and why would Gamer's Mind suppress it; I was technically calm and arriving at the logical conclusion. _"Don't worry mom. I'll be really safe with her. What kind of danger can two teenage girls get into in a private bedroom anyways?"_

"Scion, if you are half the hero everyone thinks you are, you will kill me now."

Instead of golden salvation, I instead heard more mumbling. _"Yeah. I think Taylor will get upset if I leave her alone too long. Bye Mom."_ There was the sound of pounding feet before Kendra barged in on me flat on my back and fighting my blush. "Hey, Taylor. Are you the fourth Endbringer?"

My ear twitched at the dissonant echo of hearing her from two sources, so I first turned Voice Chat off before giving my vacant response. "No, I am not. Why would you think that?"

"Because you said Scion should kill you," she responded with the echo intact. I looked at her honest and innocent expression and decided that, no, I was not touching that.

"I am not an Endbringer, and turn off your voice chat. It's annoying."

"Okay," she did so promptly, "and don't worry about mom finding out what we've been doing. She's clueless." I suspected that it ran in the family. "Hey, does your dad know?"

I wasn't sure I should have delighted in or lamented the change in subject. "No, I haven't."

"Why not?"

That was a good question: one that I had never dedicated any real time trying to answer. There were too many things I wanted to do. There were things I wanted to figure out and limits I needed to know of, if there were any. I wanted to be able to tell my dad that he didn't have to worry because nothing would be strong enough to kill me. It was all just one excuse to procrastinate after another. I reached into my Inventory, pulled out my new phone, and tried to think from his perspective. He was my dad, and above all, he wanted to know where I was and to be able to make sure I was safe.

Especially after recent events.

At the end of my deliberation, I had only one excuse left. I gave it the dismissive shrug it deserved. "I guess haven't told him because it seemed like the thing to do."

Kendra blew a raspberry that was no less dismissive. "That's stupid."

"Yeah, it is."

"So you're going to tell him over the phone?" she asked with some incredulity.

"Not exactly. I have something else I want to test, and it should be a good way to tell him." I dialed my home phone and waited for his answer. I needed to know that he wasn't on the road.

It rang once, twice, thrice… _"Hello?"_

"Dad?"

 _"Taylor, is that you? Is everything alright?"_

"Dad."

 _"Did you get enough to eat? You haven't overexerted yourself, have you?"_

"Dad."

 _"Are you being treated well? Do you want to come home?"_

"Dad!" My controlled shout managed to stop his question vomit, but not before he made undeniable how worried about me he was. "I just have something big I need to tell you. Can you sit down or lean up against something?"

 _"Taylor, are you trying to tell me that you bat for the other team?"_

I blushed at the accusation, but some part of me felt like he was being disingenuous. "Dad, no. I…I have powers."

I was a little upset with him for derailing my plan, but that was a petty thing. I waited patiently through the lingering silence, with only the sound of my dad's deep breathing coming in from the other end. _"Fuck!" That's what I was afraid of! Please, for the love of God, please tell me that that you're safe right now!"_

I sighed, glad that things weren't getting out of hand and that my plan was back on track. "I'm safe, and I think I can prove it too."

 _"Prove it? How?"_

"My powers. Just try not to freak out." If my test didn't work, I expected to feel pretty embarrassed in spite of Gamer's Mind. "Invite Danny Hebert to Super Party."

 _"Ta…"_ I hoped that his sudden silence was a good sign. _"What…"_ Him being at a loss for words was a better one, at least for my sense of tranquillity.

"Just say yes. Or you can try tapping it." I waited, until his Party Window appeared.

 **Danny Hebert Level: 8**

 **HP: 462/490**

 **MP: N/A**

 **SP: 83/90**

[Voice Chat (On/ **Off** )] [Dismiss] [Promote]

Blue returned as be his color and the unknown privacy option was alone below the two cojoined Party Windows. I hung up the phone, turned on his Voice Chat, and gave him a couple of seconds. "Dad, if you can still hear me, turn the Voice Chat under my name on."

 _"You've…told your new friend."_ The pain in his voice was palpable, and the reason was obvious in hindsight. I knew Kendra for thirty hours, and dad for all my life.

"She figured it out. She's really good at paying attention." It was only after those words left my mouth that I realized that I was taking a jab at what our relationship has been like for nearly four years. "Dad! I didn't mean it like that!"

 _"But that's what it's like, isn't it?"_

"But you can be there now. We can talk anytime we want, you can see if I'm hurt, and there's a map that'll tell you wherever I am." It was amazing that I was able to get those words out so smoothly, but it didn't change how wrong they felt.

 _"So I can watch you get hurt! So I can hear your screams and know where to find your body!"_

I didn't know what to say to that, so I just sat there. "Mr. Hebert. I don't know what you're saying, but I really like Taylor. She's cool, and nice, and I think she really gets me. Not a lot of people get me." I remained motionless, focusing my attention on Kendra's words. "I had a lot of fun today, even though the Nazi was a bit scary."

" _A Nazi! That's exactly what I'm talking about!"_

"You've should have seen it. I tried to distract him, but he threw his knife, then she went all whoosh, bam, pow. It was amazing."

 _"Wait! He didn't see your face, did he?! Please tell me he didn't see your face!"_

"Her power is really amazing too. I thought that it was silly when she told me, but it's really cool; like Dauntless and Victor combined."

 _"I don't care how amazing your power is! I…I can't lose you. I can't take it."_

"And I know that you'll let her be a hero, because she's a good person, and good people usually have good parents, and a good dad will let his daughter go out and show the world how amazing she is."

They both went silent, as the conflicting emotions of happy and anger/fear began to fade. "So, what did he say?"

 **Danny Hebert has left the Party.**

"Oh."

I felt anger, defiance, betrayal, and determination; all beneath a layer of calm focus. "No."

"Taylor?"

"Invite Danny Hebert to Super Party."

 **Danny Hebert has declined your invitation.**

"Fuck no." I pulled out my phone and called home again. "Invite Danny Hebert to Super Party." The phone rang ceaselessly.

 **Danny Hebert has declined your invitation.**

"I need to go." I threw my phone back into my inventory and before I knew it, I was running down the street.

 _"Taylor, I'm sorry."_

I toggled my end on. "It's fine. You didn't do anything wrong." I was running as fast as I could without draining much of my Stamina.

 _"You're running pretty fast. You might want to cover your face."_

"Inventory." I equipped one of my scarves and adjusted it to cover my face. "Got it."

 _"Hide your hair too."_

Under any other circumstances, I would have complained. Instead I remembered that my favorite feature was also my most distinctive. I pulled a scarf out and used it to tie up and cover my hair, something I _knew_ I didn't know how to do a day prior.

 **DEXT+1=18** (44-EXP)

 **ENDR+1=30** (68-EXP)

 **A new Skill has been created through repeated action. Due to malevolent presences, the Skill Danger Sense has been created.**

I read the new information around seventeen times before I could finally think to jump to the side. I felt something clip my arm, hard.

 **269×2** [HP-538]

"Fuck!"

 **A new Skill has been created through repeated action. Due to blunt trauma, the Skill Blunt Resistance has been created.**

 **Blunt Resistance is Level 3**

 _"Taylor, what happened?!"_ Kendra hissed. _"Something popped up saying that my Party Member was under attack, then you lost a lot of health."_

 _New Wave Brute_

Level: _? Victoria Dallon/Glory Girl_

 _?_

She looked angry, and I had no idea why. "Found you."

 **Danger Sense is Level 2**

The pain in my arm shifted into a full bodied ache, but I couldn't give a shit about how I felt physically. I was still calm and rational, but I wanted to be angry. "Nope! Fuck this! I was having a good day, beat up a Nazi, decided that it would be a good idea to tell Dad that I have powers **over the phone,** and now I have to run home because he decided to have an emotional breakdown **and** Glory PMS Girl decided to attack me for no fucking reason!"

 _"Wait, Glory Girl!"_

I ignored her. "I don't know what you're problem is, and I don't care?! My dad needs me right now, so fuck you very much!"

 **Self Presentation is Level 7**

After taking in the hero's gobsmacked expression for an instant, I sprinted past her as fast as my legs could take me. I heard some distant ringing as my stamina ran low.

 _"Hey Vicki. Can I ask you something?"_

"Oh no." 'Kendra didn't,' I thought.

 **A new Skill has been created through repeated action. Due to rapid locomotion, the Skill Sprinting has been created.**

 _"That's what I want to talk about."_

"Kendra, stop." 'She did,' I confirmed to myself.

She ignored me as I ignored my new Skill. _"Yep. I'm just wondering why you thought that it would be a good idea to attack my friend!"_ she hissed.

"Too late." There wasn't any point in stopping her by that point. She seemed intent on lambasting Glory Girl for her attack.

 _"Not important and not important. Tell me why, or you're getting a haircut."_

I sighed and started devoting brainpower to salvaging as much of the situation as possible. _"Why would you think that?! And no I don't."_

 **Sprinting is Level 2.**

"Okay, fine." I was forced into a fast walk thanks to my drained stamina, but that wouldn't keep me from trying to keep some secrets; though I was reaching a point of simply not caring. With my Map and Party Systems, I wondered if the reasons to keep my identity secret were quite as necessary. Ultimately, I decided to keep what I can, not care about what I lose, and discard what's in the way. I'd start with the first. "Try to keep everything a secret. Just confirm what I told her and try to get her to keep this to herself."

 _"…Okay. I'll keep what you did a secret if you keep everything you know about my friend a secret."_

"Or you can blackmail her. Try to get her to stop asking questions." I wondered if that wasn't the first time she'd attacked someone like that. Either way, it was better for me to save thinking about it for when I didn't have anything more important to deal with.

 _"Remember Vicki, secret, or haircut. Beep. So, how was that?"_

I looked back to see Glory Girl fly off after glancing my way. "Good enough. Do you have any idea what that was all about?"

 _"Vicki said that some guy who got shot said that the perp ran off the same way you're going."_

"So it's a case of mistaken identity. Whatever. At least I got some good Skills out of the deal."

 _"Oooo, what did you get?"_

"Not now." I was a little too focused on getting home, even though it would take around ten minutes for my Stamina to regenerate. An idle thought gave me a different idea for satisfying Kendra's curiosity. "Try tapping my name to see if you can read them for yourself."

 **Party Member Kendra Sonders is requesting permission to see your Status. Y/N**

"Yes."

While Kendra busied herself with reading up on my Stats and Skills, I tried contacting my dad yet again. Like before, there was no response. The distance to my house was close to seven miles, which gave ninety minutes that I dedicated to my sprinting skill.

 **DEXT+2=20** (94-EXP)

 **Sprinting is Level 4.**

I unlocked the door and made sure that I was heard on my way to my dad's room. I returned my scarves to my Inventory and struck the door hard enough to be heard through the house. The door creaked as it swung open, revealing my bedraggled father. "Wha…Taylor? What are you…How did you?"

"I ran." I knew that he wasn't going to take that well, but I needed to get him talking.

 _"I'll keep quiet. Zip."_

"You, you, you. You what?!" His face turned red, his nostrils flared, and his eyes became even more bloodshot. "Do you have any idea what time it is?! This city is dangerous at night!" He started pacing at that point. "And you _ran_ here?!"

"Mostly walked, but that's semantics." That may have been unnecessarily flippant, but I wanted him to burn out.

"Taylor, what if you got hurt?!" He started gesticulating.

"I did, something that you would know if you didn't leave the Party," I said ignoring the fact that I wouldn't have been on the street if he didn't refuse to talk to me. That's what this little conflict boiled down to: not talking. "We need to talk about this. My powers let me grow stronger with time, and there's a lot to them. Don't tell me what to do with them if you don't know what they are."

"I…I." He looked so defeated, and there was little I could think to say that would relieve him. I pulled him into a hug instead.

 **INTU+1=17** (42-EXP)

"It's okay Dad. I want to focus on training right now, so I'm not going out to fight yet."

"But you will. Maybe not tomorrow, maybe not next week, but you will, eventually." I could hear him beginning to crack again.

"And that's why I want you to be a part of this. You'll know the instant that I'm in trouble. Even if you can't fight with me, you can still call for help. I don't have to be alone." He needed to have some kind of power over things. My power could give him that, but he'd have to accept it.

Cool air disturbed the hairs atop my head followed by a steam filled breath against my forehead. "Okay. What do I need to do?"

I simply leaned back and invited him again. He moved to tap the Window, but paused and looked at me with a furrowed brow. "Why is it called Super Party?"

I shrugged. "It was Kendra's idea to call it that." He simply responded with a muted 'oh', then tapped the screen.

 _"So? You guys made up?"_

I prepared to turn my side of the Voice Chat back on, only to notice that she was privy to my side of a private conversation the entire time. "Yes."

"This is going to take some getting used to."

 _"Great. First order of business, get Danny to turn me on. I'm not getting anything from him."_

"Wait, what?!"

I was going to have to talk to Kendra about choosing her words if she keeps that up. "She means that you should turn on her Voice Chat so she can hear you talking."

"Oh. That makes sense." With a tap of his finger, we began deciding what I needed to do for the short and long term.

The first order of business was for all of us to understand what my powers were capable of. There wasn't anything new that I could learn from the sharing session that I didn't already know, but I got scolded by both of them once how the way I train using dynamic tension and isometrics was known. As predicted, Dad had to hold back fits of laughter at the sight, making me feel embarrassed but glad that he'd lightened up a bit. When we went over my Skills, Dad expressed a lot of interest in my Sprinting, Danger Sense, and Resistance Skills; though he did not like how we would improve the latter two. Then we started talking about my other Skills and how best to go about improving them. Kendra seemed to be particularly contemplative at that time. Finally, I decided to look into the Privacy Settings, which allowed me to hide the True Names, location, Status, and/or Skills of all Party Members. Once a feature was toggled off, I could not see that info for any of my teammates, nor could they see it. _"It's perfect!"_

"What's perfect?" She sounded even more excited than usual.

 _"Think about it. Your power turns you into a living video game character. You can learn and master Skills and Techniques, and I bet that it works better if you're doing them right. You can even keep your identity secret when having a stranger in the Party."_

While I tried to figure out where she was going, Dad just asked. "And what's so perfect about that?"

 _"We can invite Uber and Leet."_

"Kendra. I know that you think that me teaming up with Uber and Leet is a good idea, but I want to be a hero." Even as I said that, the words felt hollow. It could have been my encounter with Glory Girl, or my overnight research session, but being a hero just didn't look the same as it did

"Taylor's right, they're villains. Sure, they're more of a tourist attraction than a menace, but they're still on the wrong side of the law."

 _"That's what I'm talking about. They really aren't that bad. They are_ the _video game experts of Brockton Bay. And then there's Uber's power. He can be good at anything. I bet that he can be good at teaching others how to be good at things. That's exactly what you need Taylor."_

"They fight against heroes all the time."

 _"And heroes don't kill."_

I took advantage the ensuing silence to to really think over Kendra's proposal. What I wanted was to be a hero, but what I needed was to grow as quickly as I can. My plan was to be stronger than Aegis first, but Glory Girl was powerful enough for her Level to be invisible to me. It made me wonder how much more powerful some other capes were. "I think, we need to make a list." So far, four people knew for sure that I existed, three knew that I had powers, and two of them knew everything I did.

My first option was to focus entirely on training as I had been and figure out the rest along the way. That was the safest option, and of course the slowest. It had my dad's vote. I could see why since it was closest to choosing not being a cape.

My second option was to become a street level vigilante. It would allow me to gain EXP faster, but only if I was lucky. I had little doubt that a gun was still lethal to me.

There was the Wards option, but I couldn't see that as any more than a waste of time after I stopped to really think about it. Sure, I'd get a minimum wage salary (read allowance), and an additional salary put into a trust fund, but I didn't need that kind of money. They'd likely take an axe to my plan to ditch school, and I was committed to getting away from that hellhole.

My final option was to contact Uber and Leet. I really took the time to think about it, and the biggest downside I could find was letting two villains know that their metaphorical wet-dream exists. Being labeled a villain was barely a negative next to the fact that rebranding was a thing. In that fact was yet another possibility. "Sorry Dad, but I think that I want to try Kendra's idea."

He let out a combination of a sigh and a growl then fixed what could only be called a fatherly gaze upon me. "Okay, but under two conditions. One, if trying to invite them without their names doesn't work, we go with the solo training idea until you're sixteen. Then, you can join the Wards. Two, if it does work, we, and I do mean we, negotiate. If the deal isn't good, same thing." I nodded sharply. Despite the bumps involved, it was good to have him on my side. "Also, when this bites us in the ass, I'd like to point out that I am wiser than the both of you."

 _"Boo. Low blow Taylor's dad."_

I shook my head, changed the name of our party, toggled the privacy settings on, leaving only our Health, Stamina, Mana, and Levels visible. "Invite Uber to Gamer's Conference. Invite Leet to Gamer's Conference."

 _"Woohoo! Time to bring some villains to the morally gray side."_

 _ **L7+?: 7+?; 6+?; 14+?; (263); [5]; (112)**_

The air smelled of ozone, oil, burnt hair, burnt wiring, and countless other things that Leet barely had any name for. He was working on his latest minor-piece. It could hardly be called Tinker tech, since it was just a chemically synthesized carbon paint that seemed to eat whatever light came in contact with it. He got the idea from Grue's darkness, thinking that it would make for a bitching horror theme. "Hey, Joffrey! How's the new project coming along."

"Fuck you." Leet may have hated when Alvin used his real name, but nothing could ruin his mood. "It's going fucking awesome, thanks for asking."

"Really?!" Alvin announced, doing that voice enhancement thing again. "You aim to craft a paint darker than the depths of Hades and blacker than the edges of the universe. What, pray-tell, is the source of your jubilation?!"

Leet ignored the scent of smoked ham in the air. "Well you sorry excuse for a 'man,' the paint is so simple, a chimpanzee with a college chemistry set can make it."

"Does that mean what I think it means?"

"Start making calls. We've got some patentable Tinker Tech." Leet could already smell the royalties, which was why he should have seen the chemical hissing coming from a mile away. He ran to his synthesizer and began typing frantically. "No! No! No! No! No! Not now you bitch!" The attached computer screen lit up for a second, them died. He kicked it as hard as he could. "Damnit!"

"Leet!" He barely had time to blink before he was yanked away from a sudden spray of deadly chemicals. By time the events registered, they were back in one of their designated safe rooms. "The recipe was on the computer, wasn't it?" Leet didn't even bother answering. "Fu…What the fuck?!"

Alvin's sudden shift in tone preempted Leet's plans to sulk into his knees. "What's…"

 **You've been invited to the "Gamer's Conference" Party. [Accept/Decline]**

Silence reigned in the wake of their confusion. What else was Leet supposed to do when facing a floating screen that looked like it was ripped straight out of a video game. Even the wording matched perfectly. "Uber? Are you seeing the same thing I'm seeing?"

"Yep."

"A khaki screen?"

"Mine is green." He wasn't doing the voice thing anymore Leet noticed. Without any conscious input from his mind, Leet's hand began drifting towards the screen. He was centimeters away from accepting before Uber snatched his hand away. "Hold it. This could be some kind of Master/Stranger kind of shit."

Uber had to be out of it if he was being redundant. "Dude, look at it. You can't tell me that you don't want to know what this thing's about."

"Hell yeah, I want to know! How could I not?! But we have to be careful here."

"So what else are we supposed to do?!" Leet's arms were flailing about, gesticulating in numerous awkward angles. "How do we know if declining doesn't fuck us up?"

"Hell if I know." Uber began pacing back and forth with a classic thinking pose. "We are the video game capes. They look like video game screens. They could know who we are. They could know where we are. We can't do nothing." Uber then stopped his pacing and refocused. "We have to do something." There was a brief pause as if Uber's bearing shifted. "One of us, and just one, has to accept."

"Okay. How do we decide on who?" Uber just shrugged with all the nuance he could manage and pulled out a coin. "That works." Leet watched as Uber flipped the coin a few times before he snatched it out of the air, or at least tried to.

Instead, it flew and tumbled a few feet. "Dude. What was that for?"

"You don't flip fair. I don't think it gets much fairer than that." He walked up to the coin and smiled. "Hah, tails." His smile faded in the face of another problem. "Wait. Does that mean that I do it or that I don't?" Uber's shrug seemed to say that it was up to him. "Alright. I'll accept." The screen vanished, replaced by brown, red, and blue screens stacked vertically.

 **? Level: 9**

 **HP: 700/700**

 **MP: 770/770**

 **SP: 300/300**

[Voice Chat (On/ **Off** )] [Trust (On/ **Off** )]

 **? Level: 3**

 **HP: 200/200**

 **MP: N/A**

 **SP: 80/80**

[Voice Chat (On/ **Off** )] [Trust (On/ **Off** )]

 **? Level: 8**

 **HP: 463/490**

 **MP: N/A**

 **SP: 79/90**

[Voice Chat (On/ **Off** )] [Trust (On/ **Off** )]

[Mute: (On/ **Off** )] [Leave]

"Holy shit! This is leet as fuck!"

 _"Hello Leet. How's Uber?"_

Leet's jaw dropped at the female voice clearly coming out of the brown section. "Leet, you still with me bro?"

"It has voice chat." If Uber claimed that his voice was reverent, he would not deny it

"No shit?"

"I shit you not." What Leet was faced with looked like a dream come true. He was probably going to wake up any moment, and he was in no hurry to do so.

 _"When you're done geeking out, turn on the Voice Chat. I want to negotiate. Get Uber to accept if you can."_

Leet's brain processed, blue screened, rebooted, and processed her words all over again. What was happening could not actually be happening. It had to be one of his fantasies come to life. He turned the Voice Chat on. "Hey cutie." There was a long pause, during which he heard only the sound of a palm and forehead being acquainted with one another. A voice of bubbling rage oozed out of the blue section.

 _"Leet. Before you say one more word, know three things. She's fifteen, I have a bat, and the Inventory sounds like a great place to hide the evidence."_

 _"I'll let him do it too."_

 _"I'm fourteen."_ That would be the red one. She actually sounded young and was unusually chipper.

"Sorry sir. Won't happen again sir." Despite how real the threat to his life was, Leet was as giddy as a school girl.

 _"He didn't hear you. Turn Voice Chat on for all of us."_

"Yeah, sure thing, um, miss." He did as asked, because if things were going the way that he thought they were, he wanted them to be happy with him. "Please tell me that this is you asking to join. Heck, I'll take this being a recruitment pitch."

"Okay. I had enough of this!" Uber jammed his finger into the green screen then tapped the Party Window three times. "Please ignore him. He has terrible impulse control."

 _"And I bet yours isn't much better."_ That was the man that could only be the girl's father.

 _"He's got you there."_ That was the younger girl.

Uber took the jab, squared his shoulders, and Spoke. "If you think that true, then you have underestimated us gravely. For years, we have fought and survived, in this, Brockton Bay, one of the most dangerous of the _safe_ cities. You would do well to remember that. As you may also recall, it is you who contacted us, within the sanctity of our own private abode. I see that you are a newb in all matters Cape, so permit me to regale you…"

 _"Enough! I didn't contact you two so I can listen to you waste your power on bloviation!"_

 _"Well, I don't know what bloviation means, but you were really talking a lot."_

 _"Sounded more like blathering to me."_

Each line hit Uber like one of Gallent's depression blasts. It pissed Leet off. "Bitch! Who the hell do you think you are?! The only one who gets to talk to my best friend like that is me! You may not think we're a threat, but believe me when I say that you won't believe the kinds of things I haven't built yet. They'll blow. Your. Head off."

The pair smiled at the successful rebuttal. _"Listen here you little..."_ Their smiles grew as the man seemed to go silent from impotent rage.

 _"You know what my power is."_ And just like that, their smiles shifted. _"You know that I'm not a threat right now."_ They could practically see the smile behind that voice, and it wasn't a nice one. _"What you_ understand, _is what my power is."_ They listened without interruption, some part of their hindbrain warning them not to divert their attention for a second. _"But what you don't know, is that yesterday, I was Level one."_

"Is…is that supposed to scare us?"

She continued, heedless of his words. _"I don't eat, sleep or drink. I don't get bored. I don't get lonely. I don't get distracted."_ Her dark laughter invoked images of horns and an impossibly wide fang-filled grin. _"What I do get, is how to pay my debts."_ Leet gulped nervously, unaware of how wide his eyes were. _"You don't want to negotiate? Fine…I have a better idea."_ Somehow, her voice commanded even more of his attention. _"Here's how it is. Help me train. Help me become a force of nature, and I'll turn blind eye to your exploits. I'll even owe you a favor."_ Her voice was lighter there, but her throaty chortle put an end to the brief respite. _"Reject me, I will make it my personal mission to hunt you down. No mercy, no clemency, no leniency. EXP farming: that's what you call it, right. The Southern Ferry Station, noon: friends…or livestock. Choose wisely."_

 **You've been dismissed from the Party.**

** ***** _ **ANWtP*****_

 _ **At the end of this chapter, it is Saturday night of January eighth. I plan on having the story arch end on Jan. 10th.**_

 _ **Anyone who thinks that I'm done with Glory Girl, remember that Kendra goes to school with her.**_

 _ **And just to clarify, Party Members are not mini-Gamers. The Party System is powerful enough without giving people powers.**_

 _ **Finally, I would like to ask my readers for mechanics and settings I can add to what I've already done. Be forewarned that I've already have how Skill Evolution works locked in. Keep things to what's immediately relevant to the next chapter. I also have one Martial Art style locked in, but I'd like to get some additional input on the other four. No styles that rely on Anime physics (Ranma/Jo Jo), but anything Uber can teach is fair game. Have a nice day and remember to be cordial.**_


	6. Chapter 6

_**There were some reactions to the final scene to the last chapter, mostly positive, but there were some negative reactions. Taylor's words against them came from how Uber was trying to have more control than her, him wasting her time telling her about things she knew, and them not being respectable. If that isn't a good enough reason, nothing will be.**_

 _ **And to that one guy, I am not going to have Kendra stab Taylor in the back. That's messed up.**_

 _ **Here's chapter 6.**_

 _ **L12: E212; 31; 37; 25; 42; 18; 20**_

After the 'conversation' we had with Uber and Leet, Dad was not happy with me. That was understandable after how I had treated them, but the real reason was because I set up a meeting despite how everything broke down. He tried to call off the whole deal and would have managed it if not for the fact that no actual deal was made, and he was as much at fault. It took some doing, but I managed to talk him into giving it a second chance. I really did want to complete the Quest I got.

 **Quest: Gathering Gamers**

 _At a friend's urging, you've decided that being on the same team as the video game villains would be the right step towards growing stronger._ ( **Time limit:** _53 hours_ )

 **Success:** _2000-EXP; Skills trainer; ?_

 **Failure:** _Antagonistic relationship with Uber and Leet._

 **(Bonus+50-EXP:** _arrange a face-to-face meeting._ **)**

Another all nighter of training followed right after, which revealed some advantages of the Party System and having more Members. The night before, I had to do my internet searching in between periods of exercise. With Dad doing the searching in my stead, and Kendra doing the same with her laptop before passing it through the inventory, I didn't have to stop reading for a second and the quality of everything I read was much higher. They also took care of helping me find ways to keep my Stamina up. All they had to do was pick some random item, shove it into the inventory, then look into what it did when consumed. Energy drinks were the big stamina boosters, but they had the Caffeine Crash Status Effect that would begin draining Stamina an hour after consumption. Thing was, it was a physiological Status Effect. Kendra and Dad were both happy to let me have them for those reasons. Some foods were good for Health, and some things even gave me limited stat Training boosts, but one usually came at the cost of the other.

After many instances of passing Kendra's computer through space, we also came across reason to believe that anything that was held in the inventory was frozen in time. It only took a small bottle of hot water to confirm. It was also a happy discovery that plain water granted one Stamina Regeneration every second. How I only once needed a specific quantity of water to maintain that permanently was something none of us wanted to really think about. I didn't want to think about how I had 'compost' among my Materials either.

My powers were weird.

Eventually, I managed to convince them to go to bed, but only Kendra managed to go to sleep quickly. Jokingly thinking about putting my dad to sleep forcefully reminded that I needed to better research non-lethal takedown measures. I wasn't 'tear people limb from limb' levels of strong, but it was clearly an option. Having precise ways to apply that strength could only be a good idea. Of course, that became me looking up martial arts styles that I can put into my Melee Combat Skill. Most of the first styles I came across were mere sports. Three looked to be pretty useful, and another was nearly perfect for my body type, but would draw a lot of negative attention. That…didn't matter. I was already planning on kicking the hornet's nest. Hopefully I'd have a plan in place for when I inevitably get stung.

Kendra's phone and laptop continued to be a boon as they let me search and read on two computers while playing basic games on her phone. It turned out that solitaire had an impact on INTU and WSDM. It was unfortunately a very small impact, but it gave me an idea that made me believe that contacting the gaming villains was my best option. To my vexation, I realized that they may have seen the way I contacted and threatened them being in violation of the unwritten rules that I kept coming across in less formal publications. I _may_ have noticed if I didn't get annoyed at Uber boasting at us. They likely thought that I was the kind of person who'd try to find them where they slept. I'd have to play things carefully to rid them of that notion peacefully.

That's why when morning came and both of my fellow conspirators were awake, I practiced applying makeup to myself, which was good for Self Presentation. I knew they would be expecting a girl, so I'd put my androgynous figure to good use. It still took a number of reminders for Dad to understand that they weren't going to kill a video game powered cape. He also had to be reminded that he would know where I was at all times. It took far too long to get him to agree with me going alone. It was enough time to earn another two Stat points, my third Level-up since contacting the villains, and complete my new look.

 **INTU+1=21** (50-EXP)

 **DEXT+1=26** (60-EXP)

 **Self Presentation is Level 13**

 _ **Do you want to save your Facial Settings. Y/N**_

I tapped Yes, named it Gameboy, and played around with it enough to learn that it allowed me to hide my makeup in my power then reapply it the same way I would change clothes. It was interesting to note that Gameboy used up one of thirteen slots. When I shared this new ability, Kendra sounded like she was having the happiest seizure of her life. "You okay there Ken?"

 _"You have got to come over for another sleepover tonight."_ Too happy was a good description for how she sounded.

"You just want to put makeup on me all night."

 _"Yep."_ She was practically proud of herself.

"What happened to needing more than one reason to be my friend?"

 _"That was then, this is now"_

"Well, there's no arguing against that." That was a lie. It's only that I doubted any argument would work on her. I caught Dad shaking his head with a tired smile, but he wasn't up for commenting. "Wish me luck." I had already stacked the deck as far in my favor as I could, so luck was all that was left. I didn't think that I would need it, so I headed out in search of the gaming duo.

I decided that I would run a meandering path to the Southern Ferry. With my hair tied up and my grey hoodie's hood up, I was indistinguishable from a tall too-thin boy. It was upsetting to so directly face one of the most common insults leveraged against me before, but the extra security was worth it. Dad and Kendra weren't lazing around either. Dad decided to spend his time looking for anything that would make for good gear. Pepper spray was at the top of his list, alongside discreet body armor and a weapon of some kind. Kendra was better off looking for anything that would make for good Skills. I was sure that they could coordinate without my input, so I toggled the Mute on, ran with my muscles tense, and Observed what I could along the way.

 **Observe is Level 4**

 **Restorative Breathing is Level 10**

 **VIGR+1=32** (72-EXP)

 **ENDR+1=38** (84-EXP)

 **DEXT+2=28** (126-EXP)

My higher DEXT and greater than tripled SP REGN was a significant boost to my training. Getting to the high-rises took not much longer than the night before. The tall buildings and alleys provided a good number of places to Sprint without being seen. The only people that noticed were the occasional bums, and they weren't in a position to accurately remember the features of a 5'7" person. I would have pulled up my scarf, but I didn't want a repeat of my meeting with Glory Girl.

 **Sprinting is Level 5**

 **DEXT+1=29** (66-EXP)

 **Danny Hebert is trying to contact you.**

I narrowed my eyes and slowed to a stop. Nearly an hour had passed with me running through the city streets and I was getting close to the place and time I was supposed to meet up with the duo. Ultimately, being punctual wasn't too high on my list of priorities, so I toggled Mute off. "What's going on Dad?"

 _"Taylor,"_ he started with exasperation, _"please talk some sense into your friend."_

There was only one thing to say about that and one person to say it to. "Kendra. What did you do?"

 _"Oh. I got you books for Massage, Escape Artist, Lock Picking, Sleight of Hand, and Baking. I thought that they'd be great for you."_ That didn't sound bad, which presented the question of why Dad was upset.

 _"You stole them you mean,"_ Dad said, answering my unasked question.

 _"They won't miss it."_

I was starting to realize that certain kinds of people shouldn't be given access to an untraceable pocket dimension. "Kendra. Do you know why what you did was wrong?" I pressed on without waiting for a response. "The source of Brockton Bay's problems come from the bad economy. A city gets a bad economy when money isn't being spent. I do not want my powers used to make things worse, at least for non-capes."

A long minute passed until some loud sniffs were heard through the Chat. _"I'm sorry. They were just $25, and Danny's buying really important stuff too, and you don't have a lot, and they were already in the Inventory, and…I wanted to help."_

Kendra stole something and managed to make _me_ feel like the bad guy. "Here's what we'll do. We'll keep the books in the Inventory until Dad can get to the store and pay for them. Anything else will draw more attention to you than I'm comfortable with."

 **WSDM+1=19** (46-EXP)

My dad sighed, in a way that told of his energy returning. _"That's a good plan kiddo. Kendra, maybe you should go home for now."_

 _"Okay M.H."_

"Oh, and about the Massage Skill, I think that I can develop that easily enough without consuming a Skill Book. See if you can find anymore easily learned Skills while you're there." Crisis averted, I sighed in release and exasperation both, the latter because of what I had to look forward to. I could only hope that they wouldn't try to retaliate with violence, but my hopes weren't very high. A quick check of my Inventory showed that I was down to $22.73. I immediately noticed that I had sports armor, pepper spray, and a taser. All that remained was finding the gaming duo, and that was far easier than I ever wanted it to be. "Fuck my life."

 _"What's wrong kiddo?"_

"Dad, Kendra. What can you guys tell me about a video game featuring a dog wearing a suit and what looks like a demented white rabbit with shark teeth."

 _Video Game Villain_

 _LV: 26 Alvin Brunhold/Uber:_

 _Movement Optimization Host_

 _Video Game Villain_

 _LV: 7 Joffrey Cardoso/Leet_

 _Prototype Technology Host_

There was no better way to describe how the two idiots decided to dress themselves. I could only call them idiots because they didn't have the sense nor the decency to be _inside_ as they paraded around in their ridiculous outfits. It was no wonder why people were doing their best to keep their distance or were too stunned to think about doing the same. It was the stragglers that were cursed with the fate of being drawn into a conversation with Uber and Leet. And from the look on the current victim's face, those conversations weren't pleasant. _"I'm passing by the library. I can do it."_

"Are you sure?" I didn't want to refuse her outright if helping out would improve her mood.

 _"Yep."_ I heard a sigh from my dad's end, but he didn't say anything.

"Okay then. I'll go and rescue the bystanders from death via embarrassment." A flick of my fingers equipped a solid black scarf over my mouth, not to hide my fake features, but to make it clear that I was a cape.

Thanks to the angle of things, the two had a clear view of my approach. The momentary distraction was enough to give their 'victim' a way out. I decided to take the chance to observe the both of them.

 **Alvin Brunhold/Uber: LV: 26**

 **Condition:** Combative; Disguised

 **HP:** 1460/1460

 **SP:** 369/400

 **MP:** N/A

 **VIGR:** 16

 **ENDR:** 42

 **DEXT:** 26

 **INTL:** 36

 **WSDM:** [5-3]

 **INTU:** 22

 _Known publicly as Uber, Alvin is a dedicated friend to his partner in crime, running away from his family and cutting all ties with them so that he can indulge in his passion for video games and share his passion through his villainous antics. He is uncertain about meeting a new cape._

 **Joffrey Cardoso/Leet: LV: 7**

 **Condition:** Combative; Disguised

 **HP:** 420/420

 **SP:** 47/60

 **MP: N** /A

 **VIGR:** 7

 **ENDR:** 6

 **DEXT:** 14

 **INTL:** (13+250)

 **WSDM:** [10-5]

 **INTU:** (12+100)

 _Known publicly as Leet, Joffrey is the Tinker half of the video game duo. He is very cautious in the use of his power, always saving his best ideas, and suspecting that his power is actively trying to kill him, unknowing of how right he is. He is angry about meeting a new cape._

That, had some serious implications. Still, Leet looked like he would be a bigger problem, but I also got a perfect way to break his concentration if he ever got too confrontational. That seemed to be a highly likely problem with that Combative condition they were dealing with. I suspected that it had something to do with their reduced WSDM, and it only took one Observe to confirm that.

 **Combative:**

 _Reduces WSDM by half, rounding down._

I was becoming more sure that I wasn't a normal cape. If what I was reading about them was normal, then it painted a picture of why the world had gotten so bad, and why they thought that turning the meeting into one of their shows was a good idea.

I had to save my pondering for later and instead devote my attention to the two standing five feet from me. Uber took the lead as I expected him to. "Look Max, an altitudinous bipedal hominid cloaked in surfeit toggery." Even I didn't know all those words, or if they were words, which reminded me to read a dictionary for my INTL.

"Can I stab it in the stomach?!" It was easy to guess that they were trying to be in character, and were overdoing it.

"Not now little buddy. We need to interrogate them first."

"So long as they spill their guts."

I had no patience for their particular brand of nonsense, so I walked between them and took a direct path towards the abandoned ferry building. _"Hey Taylor. I think they are doing the Sam and Max games. It's a…point and click adventure game."_ Point and click adventure didn't sound too bad to me. _"They're freelance police who solve cases with an absolute disregard for the law."_

"Vigilante then."

 _"Careful kiddo. We don't know what they're really going to do."_ Not exactly, but it was obviously going to be some kind of revenge.

As I approached the ferry building, I couldn't help but notice the vintage car parked conspicuously in front of the building. It was painted in the black and white patterns of old police cars with a Sam and Max logo on the side.

 **DeSoto Adventure:**

 _A car from the late 1950's, this sports car was first a four seat high performance sports coupe concept car, but was changed into a limited edition luxury model. It's highly collectable and was featured in the Sam and Max series._

My eye twitched when I realized that the two spent God knows how much on staying as faithful to their source material as they could. That realization insulted me on some fundamental level. With my resentment suppressed by Gamer's Mind, it was easy to ignore what irritation I had left as I waited for them by the car. It was disturbing to watch what were considered wanted criminals walk up to me with big, unexpressive, and furry masks over their heads. They were supposed to be adults for goodness' sakes.

I would have preferred to do the negotiations without public scrutiny, but their display made that an impossibility unless we left the area quickly. In fact, I was wondering why no Protectorate heroes had shown up yet. The ferry building's close proximity to The Rig was one reason I chose it for the meeting. Whether intentionally or not, they took the advantage of a quick hero response in case things went bad and turned it against me. If the heroes showed up, I was not going to help them.

"Dad, I'm getting in a car with them. Don't freak out."

 _"Don't…don't freak out!"_ Dad strangely stopped what I expected to be a lengthy tirade about the risks I was taking.

I waited until the two were within earshot before continuing with what I was saying. "Have the PRT and Protectorate numbers primed in case they get any bright ideas."

"Hey, he's talking to himself. I thought I was supposed to be the crazy one," Leet said.

"I do believe that we are cavorting with a female specimen my lagomorphic friend."

"So she's a c-EEP instead of a d-EEP."

"Did you just censor yourself?" My urge to facepalm was becoming very difficult to resist, as was my desire to lambaste their behavior.

"Yes," Uber said in reply. "Such is the nature of the maledict E10 rating. That's PG for the uneducated plebians."

"I blame the WECOSM."

My mind blanked out for a second at the raw nonsense coming from the rabbit suited man. "What?"

"Oh. That's the World Encompassing Coalition Of Soccer Moms."

I was starting to wonder if it would be worth more to me if I simply beat them up. I glanced at their stats then quickly ran through the math. "One thousand, seven hundred, and sixty-two. That's how much kicking your asses is worth to me."

The two took a moment to share a glance before Uber literally growled at me. "It looks like she's still looking down on us." My eyes narrowed when he pulled a large revolver out.

"Then we have to show her why that's a bad idea." With how my attention was focused on Uber's gun, I failed to notice that Leet had one too. It looked like one of those German pistols that I remember reading about at one point. Normally, I would have felt concern even through Gamer's Mind, but I was more cognizant of how Uber's Level remained unchanged and Leet's only went up by two. It indicated that the former had no intent to harm me, and that something was wrong with the latter's gun. I decided to Observe it.

 **Luger Pistol: TL: 2**

 **Ammo:** 7 (blanks.) 1 (7.45 g (115 gr) Winchester JHP +P)

 **Damage:** 0-62

 _A pistol designed by Georg J. Luger and famous for it's association with Nazi Germany. It's also Max's gun of choice within the Sam and Max series._

He had only one functioning bullet in his gun, and if the numbers checked out, not even a penetrating headshot would be lethal to me, but it would be cutting it close. I'm sure it would be lethal if Status Effects were an issue for me. I double checked to ensure that Uber's .44 Magnum wasn't hiding any surprises, then thought about what I would do in response. It was clear that they were planning some kind of hazing, which Leet likely wasn't 100% on board with. It was not filling me with confidence in his ability to act as a proper teammate.

"You know what. Fuck it." I pointed at Uber, showing a complete dismissal of the 'guns' pointed at me. "Leet has a real bullet in his gun." My finger snapped to Leet as what I said registered. "You're right about your power. It is trying to kill you, but I don't know how or why. So now that I have your attention, let's get out of here before anyone shows up." With briskness speaking of my shortened patience, I grabbed Leet by the arms and tossed him into the passengers side. I tried to do the same to Uber, but the next I knew, I was in the back seat and flat on my back.

The moment of competence was refreshing.

 _"Taylor."_ My dad hissed through the chat. _"What's this about a real bullet?"_

"Relax Dad. It would have done 64 damage tops." Of course that didn't account for any Brutal or Critical hits."

 _"I'm more worried about Leet. It's kinda scary that his power is trying to kill him. How does that even work?"_

The car lurched into motion before I could respond. I caught Uber looking back, and even through the dog mask, he seemed to freeze for a second. "Sweet cherry molasses slathered over Jimminy Cricket in a sombrero dancing the rumba! We've got a hero coming in at six o'clock!"

Leet in his crazed bunny suit struggled into an upright position and also looked back. "He's, um, he's six hours early then." It sounded like he wasn't quite as in the game as before.

"Right you are little buddy. I could recommend a stellar clock repairman, but I feel that he has other things in mind." I was glad to be in an upright sitting position by time he slammed on the gas. A quick glance had me finding the hero in question already at our side.

 _Protectorate Speedster_

 _? ?/Velocity:_

 _?_

I decided to try Observing him.

 **You cannot Observe those who's Threat Level is more than 50 above your Level.**

That was a disappointment on two levels. I couldn't get any info on him, and it indicated that he was already seeing me as a villain. Still, I learned that there was a hard limit on Observe, but it made me wonder two things: if it applied to someone who didn't see me as a threat and if Velocity's Threat Bonus came from his powers. I was certain that his powers prevented him from carrying any weapons.

"You'll never take us alive!" Leet yelled distractingly. He pulled out his pistol and pointed it at the hero. I turned towards Velocity, whose movement hitched for a fraction of a second before the explosion. Leet fired the one shot, exclaimed, "fuck!" unloaded the rest of the gun. Then, in an act of desperation that actually dropped my health by a point due to its sheer stupidity, Leet threw his gun at the pursuing hero.

"Fuck it," I said, feeling even more done with the situation than before. I laid down, closed my eyes, put half my attention into dynamic tension, the other half into figuring out a plan B, and waited for capture, or the unlikely event of escape. There were sharp turns, yelled slurs, quips, all ending in a crash that had Uber, Leet, and myself diving headfirst into a pile of pale yellow foam. I struggled against it and found myself held firmly in place. Strangely enough, my screens were still visible to me. I decided to try out the Voice Chat. "Gamer to Red and Blue, the plan is shot. Going for plan B, and requesting assistance on refining what plan B will be."

A few seconds passed before I heard one of the most smug tones I've ever heard from my dad's voice. _"You know, I've forgotten what it feels like to be right. It's a good feeling."_

"We're not done with those two yet Dad. If we manage to pull this off right, we might be able to get the best of both worlds."

Dad sighed loudly. _"You aren't giving up on this, are you?"_

"Actually, I'm about fed up with them, but I'm willing to bet that me having a clue about how Leet's power is trying to kill him is worth a lot to them, so I'm going to use it as a bargaining chip."

 _"Okay kiddo. Just promise me that this is the last time."_

"That's not much of a promise, because regardless of if it works or not, I'm still joining the Wards within the week."

It's there that Kendra decided to burst into a laughing fit. _"Oooohhh, that's what you mean by the best of both worlds."_

"Yeah. I'm going to try to convince them to join the Protectorate. And guys, I'd like to do this alone."

"Taylor! No, we had…"

"DAD! … Please, I want to do this for myself." I didn't have the heart to tell him that I didn't trust him not to get angry at some point. It's true that I found them just as irritating, but my powers let me control myself. If they got too annoying, I could ignore them. Dad sighed, but didn't respond. "Create Party." I decided to name it Apologies.

 _To Swap to an Inactive Party, say "Swap to (Party Name). (A Party Member must be Promoted or all Party Members in an Inactive Party will be Dismissed.)_

That was different. I decided to Observe what Promoting did.

 **Promote:**

 _Grants a Party Member the ability to lead an Inactive Party. Inactive Parties lose access to Items in the Gamer's Inventory and their leaders can only invite new Members through physical contact. (In Privacy Mode, a Member must be Trusted before they can be Promoted.)_

My eyes widened in surprise as I thought of the possibilities, but I only let myself consider them for a moment before explaining the new aspect of my power to Dad and Kendra. I agreed to promote Dad, and Swapped Parties after he returned and paid for the books I wanted while looking for anything else I could learn.

I took a deep breath through the foam, then made the invites.

 _ **L26: 16; 42; 26; 36; 5-3; 22**_

As far as most days went, the ninth of January was a complete shit show; and Uber knew who exactly to blame for things turning out the way that they did. Cool powers or not, that girl was way too full of herself without having a single accomplishment to her name. Hell, she didn't even have a name. Uber did his best to ignore the sensations of being isolated from the pile of foam and dumped into the back of a PRT van, focusing entirely on what he wanted to say to the one who started the mess they were in.

 **You have been invited to the "Apologies" Party. [Accept/Decline]**

Speak of the devil, and she shall appear. It still left the question of how he was going to accept or decline with his arms bound. Channeling his power towards memory recall, he quickly remembered how Leet was able to accept the invitation by saying so instead of pressing the button like he did. Uber had a little geek out at realizing that her powers had voice activation before feeling jealous towards the one who had it. "I accept."

 **? Level: 12**

 **Condition:** Disguised; Restrained

 **HP: 920/920**

 **MP: 1020/1020**

 **SP: 49/380**

[Voice Chat ( **On** /Off)] [Trust (On/ **Off** )]

 **Joffrey Cardoso/Leet: LV: 7**

 **Condition:** Combative; Disguised; Restrained

 **HP: 420/420**

 **MP: N/A**

 **SP: 47/60**

[Voice Chat ( **On** /Off)] [Trust ( **On** /Off)]

A few things were different from the prior day. The line showing what condition they were in was new, she was three levels higher, and her HP, MP, and SP were all greater too. It made him wonder how she was getting the EXP and how her totals were calculated. _"Well, we're waiting,"_ he heard Leet say impatiently.

 _"I regret how all of this has turned out,"_ she said in an apologetic tone.

 _"Yeah, you should."_ It wasn't the best apology that Uber had heard, but it sounded good enough.

He decided to switch to a breathing technique so he would have an easier time with speaking. "That's nice and all, but how are you going to make up for this mess we're in right now."

 _"I'm not sure. When I first contacted you, I was hoping that you would be able to help me figure out my powers. You guys are the experts as far as I know."_

 _"Damn straight we are. Maybe if you ask nicely this time, we might forgive you."_

"You'll have to agree to a few conditions too." He was done being completely in the dark.

 _"I was thinking more along the lines of quid pro quo."_

Uber channelled the character he was disguised as and growled. "What do you think you have that we could want?"

 _"It's more about what I could offer in the future, say…answers to why Leet's powers want him dead."_

Uber's heart skipped a beat again at the accusation. He had lost count of the number of times that Leet claimed that his powers were trying to get him killed. That was something that they never shared with anyone, and was only joked about online. The girl wasn't joking at all.

Uber switched back to memory recall and thought back to what she said. "You said that you don't know how or why. How does that help us?"

 _"Because my powers are constantly getting better. What I can't find out now, I'll be able to find out later. As long as we're on the same team, I'm willing to tell you what it is as soon as I can. Thing is, I'm joining the Wards after this."_

All of Uber's thoughts were brought to a screeching halt by her declaration. If he was reading into her words correctly, she was telling them to switch sides, and was using Leet's life as a bargaining chip. _"Fuck you! I don't care what you know, we're not abandoning our mission!"_

 _"Who said you had to. Think about it for a second."_ She paused, likely to give them a chance to do exactly that, but no ideas came to Uber's mind.

Leet wasn't quite as patient. _"You really think that the White hats are going to let us do our thing? If we join up with those assholes, Uber and Leet die. They'll split us up and send us to God knows where dressed like God knows what. No thanks!"_

Uber nodded, the motion being allowed by the dog mask that held back the foam. "He's right."

In the wake of their united front, a pregnant silence persisted until she hummed in thought. _"I'm not sure that I can save your identities as Uber and Leet if you switch sides, but keeping you two together shouldn't be too hard and completing your mission should be ludicrously easy for me, and even easier if I have your help."_

"And how do you plan on doing that. Keeping us together and completing our mission." As far as Alvin was concerned, losing his identity as Uber wouldn't be too big of a loss. Even the mission was more Joffrey's thing.

 _"I can finish your mission for you by revealing the true nature of my powers at the right time. It would take time to become famous enough to pull it off, but there's no way it won't work. As for keeping you two together, well, I know that you are a package deal, and so should the Protectorate. All we have to do is make the deal a lot sweeter."_

Before he could respond, he heard the familiar hissing sound of containment foam solvent being released. He completely failed to notice when he was deposited in his cell. "Keep it quiet. They're de-foaming us."

 _"We should be fine so long as we don't speak too loudly."_ That sounded useful, and all their masks ensured that no one would see their lips moving.

 _"Wait, you can't be seriously thinking about this?!"_ If it meant keeping his little buddy alive, he was.

 _"Observe. Observe. Observe. Observe."_

Uber's brow furrowed a the sudden repeating of the same word. Leet ended up asking their shared question first. _"What the hell are you doing?"_

It took a moment before she responded. _"I'm using my Observe Skill to Level it up. I just got it to five."_

Uber's jaw dropped a little. "You can level up skills too." Suddenly, his image of her motivations became a bit clearer. "How many can you have?"

 _"I'm not sure what my limit is or if I have one, but I'm at sixteen right now."_

 _"Oh that's just bullshit. You're bullshit. Powers are bullshit. Everyone is bullshit. We're actually going to give this shit a shot, aren't we?"_

 _"I'll try to make it sure that you don't regret it."_ She said observe twice more. _"Hey? Keeping your voices as low as you can, what can you guys tell me about Coil?"_

Uber wondered if she had to make that question sound so ominous.

 _ *****ANWtP****_

 _ **I had a little difficulty deciding where I was going to take this chapter when I had to decide between Uber and Leet escaping or being captured. Ultimately, I decided this would be more interesting both short and long-term.**_

 _ **The wait for the next chapter shouldn't take half as long as this one did, so look forward to it.**_

 _ **I've also settled upon five styles. Krav Maga, Eskrima, Capoeira, Tai Chi Chuan, and an in-universe style. Now I need a good name, though I'm using Level as a placeholder.**_


	7. Chapter 7

_**I'll be making a change from how Quests work, which you'll see this chapter. This change is retroactive for anyone wanting to see how the other Quests were affected. A Quest for recruiting Uber and Leet was added to the beginning of chapter 1-6 for example. And on a tangential note, I've had to update the EXP values of each chapter too, but that had no effect on the story.**_

 _ **I have a small surprise in this chapter. The Interlude will be at the beginning and it's fairly big too, making up about half of the chapter.**_

 _ **Here's chapter 7.**_

 _ *****L14: 9-6; 21-18; 16-3; 22; 27; 17****_

As far as most days went, the ninth of January wasn't too bad. It was four past noon, and the only sign of notable cape activity was Uber and Leet, which became a bog standard car chase through light traffic. With the head start their area of operation provided, it was child's play to prepare a trap. It was everything after this successful operation which made Emily unable to think of the day as a good one.

Uber and Leet were idiots to be sure, but they became pretty aware of how quickly the PRT and the heroes can respond to a location after their first capture. It didn't make sense that they would suddenly be _less_ prepared to deal with a response than they usually were. If it was just that, she would have attributed it to the idea that they got overconfident, but the way they've been acting since the foam was dissolved flew in the face of their typical behavior. She would never trust a Leet who could keep his mouth shut when prodded.

Granted, she wouldn't trust him either way, but it went doubly so in this case.

The whole situation stank, and she didn't need Thinker powers to know the reason was the unknown cape. She didn't like unknowns. In fact, if it were up to Emily, the boy would be getting the same treatment as the known villains were getting. Except protocol was very clear on how to treat new independents, which was what he was claiming to be.

It didn't help Emily's opinion that the cape decided to call himself Level, as if taunting everyone with the connection.

If Level was to be believed, he was out for a simple walk when he spotted two obvious capes speaking with random pedestrians. Seeing an opportunity to ask a pair of experienced capes about life as a parahuman, Level approached them. They told him to wait by their 'car,' where they pulled out their guns. When Uber and Leet were questioned, they both claimed that they were planning on giving him a 'friendly' warning about approaching other capes randomly. Once they told him that, Level reacted by tossing Leet into the passenger seat and got tossed into the back by Uber when he tried to do the same to the Skill Thinker. When asked why he didn't assist in the capture of Uber and Leet, Level claimed that he wanted to take a neutral stance.

It was all complete and utter bullshit, and there was no way to prove it. So instead of getting properly interrogated, Level was being given the full VIP tour. He insisted on seeing everything, which could have been to gain a tactical advantage just as easily as because of childish curiosity.

Emily Piggot took a deep breath and tried to bury her paranoia. Cape or not, he was fifteen by his own admission, and if he wasn't lying about his powers, Level was too valuable to alienate. Dauntless 2.0, with the ability to grow stronger over time through physical exercise. Everyone thought he was pulling a fast one until he demonstrated the ability to lift over half a ton. After he promised that he would be stronger within a week, everyone started bending over backwards to put up a good front. It didn't hurt that he seemed genuinely interested in meeting with everyone.

It was suspicious as hell, and her suspicions had over three hours to brew. Still, he couldn't tour the facilities forever, so Emily's chance to make him wait inevitably came. Of course her reasons weren't entirely petty as it also gave Armsmaster time to make himself available for the interrogation. Already, he had revealed that Uber, Leet, and Level were sub-vocalizing far more than would be normal, with the timing implying that they were exchanging undetectable radio communications under the PRT's nose. It explained why their stories checked out as cleanly as they did.

Unfortunately, there was nothing left to learn remotely, so it was time to meet the cape face to face. Emily pressed her finger to the intercom button. "Send him in." Seconds later, a scarecrow of a teen walked through the door and sat down without any prompting. He was a little stiff, and his arms were trembling slightly, but Emily hesitated to attribute that to nerves. "It's good to finally meet you today. I understand that you are interested in joining the Wards, but wanted to meet with me before making any final decisions."

"Um, right. It's nice to meet you too," he said with a friendly hand extended. Giving no outward signs, Emily hesitated to reciprocate the parahuman's offered handshake, but she wouldn't have taken the job if she was afraid to risk her own well being. Emily expected a number of things to happen, but what she didn't expect was for a triangular piece of folded paper to be transferred to her grip. Dozens of new questions ran through Emily's mind.

When someone wanted to secretly give someone valuable information, doing so through a handshake was a tried and true method. So the question Emily needed to answer first was, why. The wave of confusion lasted only a few seconds, but it was long enough for Armsmaster to deem something wrong and brandish his halberd. "Unhand the director this instant."

Emily promptly took the slip of paper and broke off the handshake. "Stand down Armsmaster. His grip was a little on the strong side, that's all."

Level seemed to shrink in on himself, presenting the image of someone incapable of subterfuge or guile. "I'm sorry ma'am. I'll try to control my strength better in the future." Unless this was the beginnings of an ill-conceived joke, Emily would have to commend Level's acting skills. He looked genuinely apologetic about something he didn't do.

Armsmaster holstered his halberd and returned to his prior position. "Understandable, but you will need to take steps to learn how to restrain yourself. Receiving assistance in learning proper control is one of the many benefits that joining the Wards would make available to you. Other benefits include a $50,000 annual salary added to a trust fund up to your eighteenth birthday in addition to minimum wage pay that you can spend however you like. Another advantage is having a team of like-minded teens with whom you can share experiences and camaraderie. We are also equipped to provide for any special needs arising directly or indirectly as a consequence of your powers or employment. This is all standard for any new Wards, but if what you said about your powers is true and you display exemplary service, you can see improvement in your compensation in as little as three months."

Emily nearly sighed in relief when Armsmaster's recruitment speech came to a close. She never liked listening to them, and hated giving them, but at least Armsmaster ended on something that would make for a good segue. "Speaking of your powers, I can't help but think that they are too good to be true. Do you have a way to prove here and now that your powers work as advertised?" It was a long shot, but any additional information that may not have come up during Level's brief testing was worth learning. She may even manage to catch him in a lie or get some insight on the piece of paper he handed her.

"Well…I do have a few ways to prove it, but I'm not really comfortable sharing everything about my powers right now. I know that it's silly, but I can't help but worry about what would happen if any of my weaknesses get exposed."

Emily clenched her fists when Level's eyes seemed to gain an uncharacteristic sharpness. Either he was using a ludicrously subtle Master power, or he was trying to communicate something to her. Armsmaster ended up taking Level's implied question in her hesitation. "While your concerns are noted, there is such a thing as being too paranoid. Rest assured that all information that could be detrimental to the safety of any heroes is protected by the best security we have available. The Wards' identities are known only to a select few within the PRT. If anyone reveals your secrets to a criminal element, we have a small list of suspects. The perpetrator would be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."

"But is it still paranoia if they really are out to get you?" With far too coincidental timing, his eyes sharpened again.

Suddenly, that single piece of paper that he handed her held far more weight than any paper should. "Perhaps," Emily said to interrupt whatever Level was saying, "if I can promise that whatever you have to tell us won't leave this room, would you be more willing to speak?" He lowered his head for a second, then nodded. Emily returned his nod then pressed the second of her three emergency buttons. The lights turned red, shutters blocked her windows, and other hidden mechanisms activated. "Alright, enough games. This room is now completely cut off from the outside world, so you're going to tell me what _this_ is all about and you're going to tell us about your powers." 'This' being the paper she was holding up where Armsmaster could see.

Unsurprisingly, Level's posture shifted into something far more confident than before. "Huh? I wasn't expecting you to do that. Regardless, I think you already know what _this_ is." Emily ground her teeth at Level's distinctly female voice. _She_ had been pulling a fast one from the very beginning.

"Humor me."

H-She shrugged. "Contained within is a list of every spy that I discovered during my 'tour' of your facilities." She used finger quotes, telling Emily the true purpose of the tour. "While I don't think you'll be able to distinguish colors in this lighting, blue is for anyone that you might already know about. Red is for those who were given offers they couldn't refuse. A red name is underlined with blue if they overlap. Black is for everyone else. I've written down who each person is selling information to. You may notice one villain's name turning up more often than the others."

Emily's heart and body became agitated, which was not good considering the state of her kidneys. Level claimed to be a Brute with the ability to grow stronger over time, and was claiming that she was a powerful Thinker as well. Emily was no expert on parahuman powers, but that didn't add up. "You've made some extraordinary claims today. Forgive me if I end up thinking that you are guilty of embellishment. Perhaps you would be willing to tell us what your powers truly are?"

She hummed in thought. "While there is an easy way to prove what my powers are, I get the feeling that neither of you would be very receptive, unless you want to prove me wrong on that count."

With one sentence, Level raised a direct challenge to Emily's ability to trust. Of course if she wanted to be trusted, she'd have to show some trust in return. "Before we go into that, why don't you tell us about the real reason you were with Uber and Leet? Certainly you don't expect me to fall for that sack of lies."

Level shrugged. "Hm, I suppose it's fair that you'd want to know. I contacted them last night with a plan to make a deal in which I participate in their shows for six months in return for them helping me figure out my powers and any tricks to improve my growth rate. That didn't go very well, so I 'convinced' them to meet up at the southern ferry. To my surprise, they had one of their themed activities ready to go, or at least ready enough to haze me. During the car chase, I realized that my best option, if I could manage it, was to join the Wards and convince Uber and Leet to join the Protectorate. That has been going according to plan, with all of the spies being a minor hiccup."

There were dozens of things wrong with that story, all starting from one point. "That has to be one of the most idiotic things I've heard of since a cape decided to call himself Chubster. Try again…the truth this time."

Level pressed her hands to the armrest of her chair and slowly pushed herself to a standing position. Armsmaster brandished his halberd while Emily's finger found the first button, which would douse Level's half of the room in foam instantly. Luckily for her, Level made no move other than to use her height and sharp gaze for intimidation. Emily wasn't impressed. "I did not lie to you. Perhaps if you opted to learn what my powers are first, you'd understand my reasoning."

Emily met Level's gaze as she mulled over the girl's complaint. Level seemed insistent on sharing what her powers were, and Emily could only think about how compliant Uber and Leet had been. "You mentioned a quick way to explain what your powers are. What _exactly_ would that entail?"

Level sat back down and tilted her head. "I'll need a few seconds to figure out how to describe it without breaking your suspension of disbelief." Emily counted to twelve before she spoke. "Think of it as a connection between myself and a number of people I choose. Anyone who is a part of this connection can communicate with anyone else, excluding or including whomever they want. It also includes visual information on each person's general health and if they are being affected by any atypical effects. Individuals can also allow those they trust the ability to see their identity and where they are on an included map. I can change things so that every member's identity and location are visible regardless of who they trust. Beyond that, I am not exempt from the rules of this power."

Emily fought not to let her jaw drop. She would have been impressed if it was just radio comunications without hackable hardware, but it also added constant medical diagnostics, a map, individual control over the power, and possibly warnings if anyone is being Mastered. If the part about revealing identities was true, it would still be a non-issue if Level joined the Wards. It was logistical perfection, and far too good to be true. "And this doesn't let you control the people you're connected to?"

Level's brow furrowed. "If it does, I'll be pretty upset that my power has been lying to me so far."

It was the answer of someone who hadn't considered the possibility. "Who have you connected to so far?"

"Uber, Leet, my dad, and a friend." That explained how Uber and Leet were communicating under their noses.

It also meant there were four people who could be potentially Mastered without anyone knowing. Half were already in a perfect position for observation, which was an amazing stroke of luck. "And joining this connection will help us learn about your powers?"

"I don't expect you to believe me otherwise."

That was a reasonable assumption considering that Emily hardly believed her as is. "Fair enough. How do you form a connection with someone?"

"I need to invite them by name. A cape name works just as well. Then they must accept the invitation."

Meaning that any recipient had to give some measure of informed consent. If Level really was telling the truth, the risk was worth taking. Unfortunately, the only people available for the test were each leaders of one half of the local branch dedicated to parahuman law enforcement. Fortunately, Armsmaster had numerous Master/Stranger contingencies built into his suit, including things that would neutralize him if he became a threat to his allies and scanners that would detect any abnormal brain activity. "Armsmaster, join Level on her side of the room."

He did so without question as Level focused on him. "Before I do this, I'd like you to know that I'm still connected to Uber and Leet. Is that okay with you, or do you want me to cut them off?"

It was a good question and a sign of Level's cooperativeness. Emily decided that she would leave answering up to Armsmaster, who proceeded to do so without prompting. "Level, before I make such a decision, I need you to confirm that they will not be able to harass me or aquire any sensitive information."

"You'll have the option to mute all incoming voices and the most they'll learn is how durable your armor is, unless you decide to trust them."

He nodded back. "Understood, but know that if you are lying to us, you will be charged with assault with a parahuman power at the least."

"That's fine. Just give me a second." Level then poked at the air a few times in one of the odder displays of behavior she'd seen a cape partake in. "Powers… Invite Armsmaster to Powers Party." What Level said was ridiculous, but Armsmaster's reaction was immediate. Emily was prepared to foam the both of them, but the Tinker quickly collected himself.

"3:56 pm. January 9th 2011. This is Armsmaster commencing power testing of the cape known currently as Level. After speaking the phrase 'Invite Armsmaster to Powers Party,' a green hued window appeared. Contained within the window is the text, 'You have been invited to the Powers Party. Accept, forward-slash." He suddenly paused to glare at the teen through his helmet. "Level! Explain."

Something must have already went wrong, but Level looked unperturbed. "It's voice and touch controlled. You said accept…" And she trailed off from there.

"That is information you should provide before any power testing is performed."

"If that's how you plan on doing it, we're going to be here all day if not all week," Level countered. She seemed absolutely confident that she was right.

Armsmaster turned to face her fully. "All parahuman powers must be tested thoroughly when they require human targets. We are already breaking protocol here."

Level glanced at him then snorted in a blatant display of derision. "I'm sharing my power here so we _won't_ waste time pointlessly. I only need you to believe me when I say that my powers have turned me into a living video game character. We can do testing from halfway across the city now that…"

"Hold it!" Emily interrupted. "Did you just say that you're a…video game character?" If Level turned out to be a result of one of Leet's contraptions, Emily was going to kill him: consequences be damned.

"Yes. My powers work off of video game logic. The only things you need to figure out what I can do is a pen, paper, and a calculator, because everything is spelled out. I've confirmed with Uber and Leet that my power mostly resembles MMORPG, or Mass Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games. But there are no games that work exactly like my powers."

At least that meant she wouldn't have to murder Leet. "Armsmaster, is she telling the truth?"

Armsmaster stopped glaring at Level and fixed his attention upon her. "While my knowledge regarding modern video games is lacking, Level's powers do bear a strong resemblance to Dungeons and Dragons, the precursor to the RPG genre." After saying that, Armsmaster frowned oddly, poked the air the way Level did, then smiled.

Emily decided to ignore Armsmaster's behavior in favor of Level. She was starting to show signs of impatience, which was an opening crack in the teen's calm veneer or a chance to garner some good will. Level seemed to be cooperative so far, so Emily decided upon the latter option. "Fine, we will postpone power testing for the time being. Is there anything else you want to tell us about?"

"If there's anything I want to talk about, it's how I've given you a list of spies that I found, and you haven't looked at it. Call me crazy, but I'm a little hesitant about joining an organization that's infested with moles. At least not without some assurances that the problem is being dealt with. Do you know, you have a guy whose job is to tell Coil about every Thinker that comes in? I'm glad that I can fake being a Brute. Coil is the one forcing people to be spies."

Emily's hand quickly found the forgotten paper and unfolded it. While she couldn't distinguish between blue and black in the red lighting, she recognized the two underlined names as people on the Watch List for suspicious behavior. There were two for the E88, one each for the Merchants, ABB, and Accord of all people, and six for Coil. The Accord, ABB, and an E88 man all added to Coil's count. Worst of all, most of the names loyal to Coil for whatever reason were people she recognized as being in highly valuable positions with access to most areas, including the janitor responsible for cleaning her office. "How did you get this information?"

"It's from one of the minor powers that I call skills, Observe." Emily was about to ask what Observe was, but got mildly distracted by how Armsmaster's attention snapped to an invisible object then followed its movement. Level noticed her lapse in attention and looked back. "Can you read that?"

Armsmaster nodded. "4:03 pm, same day. While speaking with Director Emily Piggot, two windows visible only to Level and myself appeared. One is blurred, but the other is a concise account of the Director's condition, represented numerically and descriptively, her allegiances, and a short biography. I will now read out its contents. Emily Piggot: Level 14; Condition: mild blood poisoning, overweight, high blood pressure, major kidney damage, moderate muscle damage (legs); Allegiances: Parahuman Response Team. HP: 573 forward-slash 730. SP: 26 forward-slash 30. MP: not applicable. V-I-G-R: 9 subtracted by 3. E-D-N-R: 21 subtracted by 18. D-E-X-T: 16 subtracted by 3. I-N-T-L: 22. W-S-D-M: 27. I-N-T-U: 17. Emily Piggot is a long lived member of the PRT and one of the two non-parahuman survivors of Nilbog's rise in Ellisburg…"

"Enough!" Emily gave the armored man a firm glare before turning that glare upon Level. She wasn't too upset about her story being known because she didn't care to keep it secret. The issue was that she never bothered to share and no one bothered to ask. "You used your power on me?"

The teen shrugged back at her. "Like I said, my powers are voice activated. I'm learning not to use trigger words, but it's unavoidable when telling someone about my powers." So not only did Level manage to aquire Emily's personal information, she did so casually and accidentally.

"And what happens if you do say the wrong words at the wrong time? How many people can you hurt just because you weren't watching what you say?"

"None so far." Level's eyes narrowed slightly. "That doesn't mean I won't develop a dangerous skill in the future. I will be very careful if that happens."

Emily wasn't one to bet on young parahumans showing that kind of restraint without rigorous training, but that played second fiddle to how Level casually implied that she could gain new powers. Observe also didn't sound particularly weak for a 'minor power.' It sounded like the kind of power that was the reason Thinkers were the first targets in any parahuman engagement that included them. And Level had spent over three hours using it on every person she came across during her tour. Nearly one-hundred men and women, mothers and fathers, had their personal information revealed to a teenager who never thought twice about invading their privacy. With that power alone, Level was the kind of potential threat that needed to be dealt with or brought under their umbrella. The first wasn't an option unless the girl decided to try her hand at genocide; fortunately, they were on track for the second option as far as Emily could tell. "Alright. Tabling that and our spy issue, what are you looking to get out of the Wards?"

"I'm looking for an arrangement that has people helping me with how quickly I can improve my strength, skills, and survivability. I do have a few conditions for joining, but I think they're fairly reasonable." Emily did not like the sound of that, but waved Level onwards regardless of her misgivings. "The first is that Uber, Leet and myself are a package deal. You take all three of us, and keep all three of us in Brockton Bay, or you get none of us. That's what I've promised them, and I will stick by that."

Emily flexed her fingers but reigned in any further reaction. She would have to fight against some superiors to manage that, but Brockton Bay's heroes would be better off for it so long as Uber and Leet behaved. "The second is that we need to keep the mental aspects of my powers secret. I can get away with being a Brute that gets stronger through exercise and someone who becomes superhumanly skilled with just a week of practice. If the villains find out about my power to learn part of someone's life story at a glance, they'll see me as a threat to the unwritten rules they rely on."

Again, it was a reasonable request. It would draw negative attention from her superiors if they kept that kind of secret past Level's press release, but only the most idiotic and selfish bureaucrats would give more than token complaints. "My final condition is that I don't want to go to school. That would be forty hours a week; time I can't dedicate my full attention towards improving my skills or stats. It would be a better use of my time if I did homeschooling or computer courses."

Emily blinked. "And that's it?" Level nodded back, leaving the director feeling…pleasantly surprised. Every one of them would be a benefit to the ENE PRT if they could manage it. The first meant three new capes, which meant more manpower and a huge influx of funding. The second meant that they'd have a surefire way to suss out spies with the villains being none-the-wiser. The last meant that Level would be available and under surveillance for most of every day. The negatives all boiled down to one word: paperwork. "Well, I can't say that everything will be easy, but what you asked for is at least doable. We might receive some opposition from other directors or the Youth Guard, but it's doable."

"That's reassuring." Emily couldn't tell if she was being sarcastic or not. "So I think that leaves deciding when I sign up. I'm thinking Tuesday morning or tomorrow evening. I understand that you guys like want me signed up ASAP, but I have plans to drop out tomorrow and I want to give my dad a little more time to get used to all of this."

She was right, Emily did want to get the recruitment over with, but that wasn't an option without her father. "I see. How can we be sure that you will come back?"

"Oh that's easy." Level brought her left hand up to her scarf and held out her right. "Hello, Emily Piggot, my name is Taylor Anne Hebert. Here's hoping for a cordial working relationship."

Emily looked at the smiling girl's boyish face and extended her hand in return. "Same here. You can start with reporting the full range of your powers to Armsmaster. I'd also like you to leave the moles to us. You've done enough identifying them."

"That sounds good for now. I don't have any ideas on how to deal with Coil aside from what I've already done. Though, may I make a name suggestion: Operation Lawnmower. After all, one of the best ways to find a snake in the grass is to mow the lawn."

Emily found herself liking the name right away. No one would guess the operation's goal from its name, it still invoked an image of the mission, and (God forbid) anyone lost wouldn't have an embarrassing name forever linked to their deaths. "I'll take that under advisement. You're dismissed."

Emily pressed the button to release the localized lockdown as Level stood up and gave a crisp salute. She then returned her scarf to its prior position over her face and took on a more demure posture. "Thank you Ma'am. I look forward to working with you soon." Even her voice was back to its prior tenor.

After that jarring shift in behavior, Level left. Emily let herself relax slightly and turned her attention towards Armsmaster, who was acting robotic as he usually did. "I want a detailed Threat Assessment on my desk by tomorrow afternoon." Emily was still confused over the specifics of Level's power, but hoped that a full dossier on Level's capabilities would get rid of that niggling seed of doubt telling her she was getting in over her head.

 _ *****L13: E98; 33; 39; 26; 43; 21; 24****_

My time at the PRT HQ proved to be very productive. Convincing Uber and Leet to switch sides earned me a Bonus of 200 EXP from my Gathering Gamers Quest. I also figured out that I could learn from Skill Books in my Inventory without taking them out. I netted three Skills from four books. Lockpicking and Escape Artist both went into Liberate while the book on pickpocketing became Misdirection. Dad got me a book on Ventriloquism, which was an amazing find. When combined with the Passive aspect of Misdirection, it let me use Active Skills without needing to cover my mouth. I also developed the Massage Skill and added Baking to my Crafting Skill. I also lucked out in spotting a Coil plant within a minute of being released from the foam. I wouldn't have thought to keep my powers secret if not for that, nor would I have gotten my new Quest.

 **Quest: Operation Lawnmower**

 _The supervillain known as Coil has planted numerous spies throughout the PRT and Protectorate. Weed them out and subdue the snake before his plans come to fruition._ ( **Time Limit:** _4 months_ )

 **Success:** _+100,000-EXP; ENE Parahuman organizations secured_

 **Failure:** _Death or enslavement of self, friends, and/or family._

( **Bonus +10-EXP:** _for each Coil agent identified._ ) (6)

The rewards were huge compared to what I was used to, but so were the risks. That quest wasn't the kind of thing I could do flying by the seat of my pants like I had been for the last two days. It was reassuring that I wouldn't be going into this one alone. The real question going forward was deciding who to exclude. It seemed fairly obvious that I should exclude everyone who wasn't a member of the parahuman organizations and was unaware of my power. I was apprehensive about keeping my dad and friend in the dark, but I knew that the director wouldn't approve of civilians being involved. That would also exclude the Wards, except for two who had slipped my mind. I quickly checked Voice Chat to make sure that I wouldn't be transmitting to the gaming pair and glanced at Armsmaster's intimidating Level and Health Points.

 **?/Armsmaster: LV: 24+179**

 **Condition:** Combative; Disguised; Fatigued

 **HP: 1268/1380 (8735/8950)**

 **MP: N/A**

 **SP: 425/440**

[Voice Chat ( **On** /Off)] [Trust (On/ **Off** )]

Once I was alone and on my way out, I spoke to him using my Ventriloquism. "I left out another important part of my power. While looking at someone who has a low enough Level, I can get their Job, Name, Level, and a Title if they have the latter. I had this before Observe. It's also how I ended up meeting two of the Wards at the library Friday afternoon. Fair warning, we might have to bring them in on Operation Lawnmower because I may have told Kid Win his specialty."

 _"What!"_ Armsmaster yelled. He must have done so in the midst of a group, because he cleared his throat and stomped off at a fast clip.

That was fine by me as it let me talk without interruption. "I was able to do this because of his Title: Modular Technologies Host. Other parahuman Titles I've seen so far are Redundancy Host, Prototype Technologies Host, and Movement Optimization Host for Aegis, Leet, and Uber respectively. If you've brought up your Status Page by now, you'll be able to see what your Title is. Additionally, I can see that you have the Combative Condition like Uber and Leet do. This is the source of your reduced wisdom. Lastly, I do not have a Title nor do I have the Combative Condition. It's up to you to decide what to make of that." His stomping became even faster paced after that.

Finally under the dusk sky, I turned off my side of the chat with an exaggerated sprinting motion then began Observing people. I didn't turn on Mute, but I didn't want to annoy him with me constantly whispering Observe. There weren't a lot of people out, but the streets were populated enough for the Observe Windows to build up. I willed each into a position where my pumping arms could close them out. As I read through one of the Observe windows, I nearly stumbled over myself instead of slowing down as intended.

 **Julian Hunter/Creep LV: 15**

 **Condition:** N/A

 **Allegiances:** Coil

 **HP:** 914/920

 **SP:** 380/380

 **MP:** N/A

 **VIGR:** 17

 **ENDR:** 38

 **DEXT:** 15

 **INTL:** 19

 **WSDM:** 7

 **INTU:** 12

 _Called Creep for his predilection towards rape, pedophilia, and brutality, Julian was dishonorably discharged from the Marines and later found work under Coil. Because the supervillain provides for his 'needs,' Coil has his complete loyalty._

( **+10-EXP:** _Coil agent identified_ )

The six foot man watched me with an intensity that was well beyond normal. Worse still, he was directly in my path. Only the fact that we were in a public area gave me the confidence that he wouldn't attack.

 **Sense Danger is Level 3**

My power certainly wasn't helping.

All of that happened in the ninety seconds it took Armsmaster to finally process what I told him. _"Level, are you claiming that you are not a parahuman?"_ He hissed at me. _"I hope you have more evidence to substantiate your claim than what your powers tell you and wild deductions."_

"I made no such claim. I only presented the evidence and left the rest to you." I considered telling him about Julian, but I knew that would lead to overreactions from him. "Figuring that out is something we can save for later." I decided to start Massaging myself to restore my stamina faster, even if it only saved a few seconds. I then sprinted past Julian without sparing him a glance.

 **Restorative Breathing is Level 12**

 **ENDR+1=40** (88-EXP)

 **Sprinting is Level 6**

 **DEXT+1=27** (62-EXP)

When my stamina was just about to run out again, Armsmaster spoke up. _"Level, do you have_ any _understanding about the ramifications of everything you've told me. This isn't something that we should put off for later. We should at least give you an MRI to determine if you have an active Gemma, or at least a Corona Pollentia "_

"Which would give the bad guys a nice big clue implying that something is different about me."

 _"It is well within my capabilities to design a handheld MRI device."_ That would work.

 **Ventriloquism is Level 5**

 **Massage is Level 2**

"Huh, well, I don't think that's something we can do now. And I'm supposed to be telling you everything that I'm capable of, but I think it will be easier if we turn on the Trust option." I made sure to not share the fact that Trust could be one sided. I wanted to see his Status Page so I would know where his Allegiances lay.

 _"What would turning on the Trust option entail?"_

His tone sounded distrustful or analytical, but I didn't care either way. "It would invalidate the Privacy Mode between us, allowing us to see each other's real names and location on the map. It'll also let us look at the other's Status Page and Skill List."

He hummed for two seconds. _"So it will expedite the process. … I am now Trusting you."_ A quick glance revealed his name to be Collin Wallis. I Trusted him in turn then tapped his name.

 _You have acquired the Perk: Efficiency._

 **Status**

 **Protectorate ENE Leader**

 **Name:** Colin Wallis/Armsmaster

 **Title:** Compact Technology Host

 **LV:** 24

 **Armor LV:** 179

 **Threat LV Bonus:** 80

 **Condition:** Combative, Disguised, Fatigued

 **Allegiances:** Protectorate, PRT, Wards

 **(Skills List.)**

 **Emotions:** Curious, Envious, Cautious

 **HP:** 1265/1380 (8794/8950)

 **SP:** 321/380

 **MP:** N/A

 **VIGR:** 18

 **ENDR:** 38

 **DEXT:** 20+(400)

 **INTL:** 46+(1000)

 **WSDM:** 12-[6]

 **INTU:** 6+(200)

Ignoring the Perk for the moment, I lamented not being able to see his biography, but apparently that was exclusive to Observe. That didn't matter as I only wanted to see his Allegiances. "You only have to tap my name then the words: Skill List." Sure that looking at my Skills would distract him for a few minutes, I turned Voice Chat off then devoted my attention to training and what to do about being followed.

I also discovered that the Efficiency Perk cut the cost of Skills by five percent.

Observe managed to pick up yet another Coil agent, making it clear that he was tracking me. I suspected he either wanted to find out where I lived or to test me in some way. I didn't want to give him an opportunity for either. That meant I couldn't go home and needed avoid the alleys. It would put a damper on improving my mental stats, but it provided a perfect chance to focus on my Sprinting Skill and my Stamina restoration Skills. After two rounds of Sprinting, I made sure not to spend more than a quarter of my Stamina in case something happened. It took almost two hours for Armsmaster to do more than mumble to himself. During that time, I earned some Skill Levels, Stat Points, and EXP from spotting two more agents.

 **Restorative Breathing is Level 13**

 **VIGR+1=34** (76-EXP)

 **Massage is Level 7**

 **DEXT+1=28** (64-EXP)

 **Sprinting is Level 8**

 **Ventriloquism is Level 7**

What followed was a long discussion about everything that I knew about my powers, like what my Stats meant, what they used to be, how I develop Skills, how EXP worked, etc. I was honest with him at every turn, but he always had one more question to ask. There were some things I didn't know the answer to, like if I could store people in my inventory, how my power decided on Quests, what my upper limits were, etc.

Meanwhile, I had taken to the rooftops when a good opportunity arose right after passing another new mercenary. With my Vigor and my Sprinting speed, I had little difficulty with leaping across buildings of similar heights. I eventually found an abandoned building and turned it into my personal obstacle course. It was nearly ten when Armsmaster's questions finally wound down. If not for me being able to train freely over those three and a half hours, I would have been very cross with him.

 **WSDM+1=22** (52-EXP)

 **Misdirection is Level 3**

 **ENDR+1=41** (90-EXP)

 **Restorative Breathing is Level 14**

 **Sprinting is Level 10**

 **Ventriloquism is Level 8**

 **VIGR+1=35** (78-EXP)

 **DEXT+2=30** (134-EXP)

 **Massage is Level 9**

 _"Thank you for your cooperation Miss Hebert. While this was far from protocol, it will allow me to ensure that your practical tests are as streamlined as possible."_ After spending hours sharing my secrets with him, he was turning out to be far less suspicious of me.

"That sounds like a good plan to me." I paused for a second to take in my surroundings. "If that's all, do you want me to Promote you? I've been out of contact with my other Party for a long time, and I think you can test a few things for yourself that way."

 _"That would be preferable."_

"Okay, just don't give Uber and Leet any grief…unless they earn it. That's kept them from causing trouble so far." I turned on my link to them. "Uber, Leet, I'm putting Armsmaster in charge. Try not to harass him any."

 _"Yeah yeah, the newb is in charge,"_ I heard Uber say. _"We'll play nice."_

 _"He'll probably Mute us again. Maybe I can get him to talk shop first."_

Uber gasped theatrically…literally. _"Are you…cheating on me?"_

 _"Never. You know that you're the best bro a dude could hope for. It's just, a Tinker has needs…you know?"_

"Ugh, keep it to yourselves. No one wants to hear that." They simply laughed before going silent, leaving me alone with Armsmaster and the image they put in my head. "Good luck. You'll need it." Armsmaster sighed back at me.

I chuckled at him. "Swap to Gamer's Conference Party."

 _ *****ANWtP****_

 _ **This took longer than planned, which is expected when I had to rewrite over half of it. The original draft just had far too much hostility, all of which could be traced back to the lack of a single sentence. The next chapter will finally be the end of the prologue chapters. I've got just about every part of the Gamer's System figured out except for any Titles Taylor could earn.**_

 _ **Like, comment, and review. And don't forget to be cordial.**_


	8. Chapter 8

_**I went into this chapter thinking that it would be the last in the Tutorial Arc. Silly me. It still took five rewrites of the chapter to get anything I was remotely satisfied with. The problem might be my difficulty with narcissistic characters. Kaiser might be a nightmare for me. This first hurdle I've come across normally would have made me quit. Instead, it delayed me by a month. It's twice the size of most chapters at least.**_

 _ **Here's chapter 8.**_

** ***** _ **L14: E578; 39; 43; 37; 43; 22; 25**_ ***

As I walked that final block leading up Winslow High, I thought back on the last 70 hours of my life. It was crazy how much had changed in such a short time. I thought back to the night before: when I reconnected with my dad and Kendra. She did a good job convincing him not to call the PRT or my phone. The first may have outed me to the rank and file while the second wouldn't have worked with my phone in my Inventory. I gave them a recap of my day, sans anything involving Coil and his pet pedophile. Things got awkward when he asked when I was coming home, but I managed to smooth things over by telling him my plan to improve my mobility. It took me promising to flee and contact Armsmaster at the first sign of trouble to assuage his fears.

It wasn't much of a promise, as I would have done so regardless.

They weren't able to do much for improving my physical Stats other than provide food. Kendra also discovered she could take Consumables from the Inventory and drag-and-drop them to her Avatar. It was, as she described it, "all the fun of not starving without the chore of eating." Dad tested it out with some non-toxic moisturizer and came out with skin smoother than he could ever remember.

I swapped back to Armsmaster's Party to find that it didn't take him long to 'experiment' with dismissing Leet from the Party. Apparently he wasn't interested in talking shop. I ignored their drama and jumped straight into discussing my powers again. He seemed to be inordinately happy when I revealed Kendra's discovery. Apparently it would allow him to save forty minutes a day. I could understand his desire to make the most of each day, but the way he fixated on instantaneous meals was a little off-putting. I left him to his own devices rather than try pulling him out of it.

I shifted to conversing with Uber and Leet, after I added the latter back to the Party. It was then they (Leet mostly) began asking for me to show them some trust. He was right too, as I had pushed them away from everything they have known and into an uncertain future; all for the sake of a equally uncertain promise. Uber had already taken the first step to trusting me. So it was high time I returned his show of faith, after impressing upon them the threat Coil represented.

After Trusting them, I explained how they could look at my Skills. That payed off almost immediately when they asked me why I wasn't injuring myself to work on my Resistance Skills. My answer was, "I didn't think of it." Leet's suggestion of running head first into a wall was vetoed then re-imagined as me shoulder checking a concrete pillar at top speed. Unsurprisingly, running into a concrete pillar at 23 miles per hour hurt: dealing 284 damage. Uber and Leet confirmed my Blunt Resistance Skill gaining EXP.

I then took a chance to learn what Perks I would gain from them. Leet's Perk: Innovator, made it so I can Craft anything once at half effectiveness if I have the Blueprint and Materials. It was a blatant copy of Leet's power, and potentially very powerful in everyone's opinion. I agreed. Uber's Perk: Dedicated, increased the EXP gained for all Skills by 2%. That was a very happy discovery.

Hours passed before Armsmaster noticed my health dropping from full every five minutes. Apparently after seeing the Stat Training Bonuses healthy foods gave me, he deduced that the foods granting the best Bonuses would be the best foods for his own health. He had spent an hour alone in the Rig's pantry putting things into the Inventory and calculating which mixture of ingredients would make for the best nutrient paste. He discovered cartilage and bone broth had a significant impact on DEXT growth.

As Armsmaster worked on his culinary concoction, Uber and Leet were busy imagining what other kinds of Resistances I could have, and how they'll train them. Their almost jovial discussion left me certain they intended to use 'training' as an excuse to take out their frustrations on me. Either that, or they were unaware of how their discussion sounded like they were designing a torture chamber.

Armsmaster later became interested in figuring out how my damage was calculated. Everytime I hit the pillar, the damage was consistent except for when my VIGR, Sprinting Skill, or Blunt Resistance went up. When I said I didn't know what my weight was, he passed a scale through the Inventory. After calculating my kinetic energy, he figured out a near one-to-one ratio between damage and deca-joules. Of course physics could get complicated, but it gave a good idea about how durable I am at any given moment.

The rest of the night remained uneventful, and by morning, I was able to take off my Gameboy disguise and jog leisurely towards Winslow High. I managed to cross paths with another one of Coil's agents, but this one was minding his own business. I took it as a sign that he lost interest in me or lost track of me. Either would be a win in my favor.

( **+10-EXP:** _Coil agent identified_ )

Compared to my involvement with engaging Coil and the other villains in a battle for information, and my negotiations with Director Piggot, convincing Principal Blackwell to pay reparations for the three semesters of torment she allowed to happen would be easy. I was significantly more intelligent than the average person and noticably wiser too. Thinking about my meeting with Emma's father back when my Stats were still well below an average adult, I was honestly surprised when it didn't blow up in my face. It was likely my clutch decisude to omit Emma's name from my journal that let him pretend his daughter wasn't a raging psychopath long enough to hear my side of things.

With my Map as a guide, I found where my father and Mr. Barnes were parked. 'Showtime,' I thought to myself. Dad noticed me first, and appeared confused from seeing how subdued I was. But to me, that was how I usually was when at school. I suppose even before my powers, I never showed him this side of myself. "Don't worry. I'm just acting like this," I whispered into Voice Chat through my Ventriloquism Skill. He nodded back then directed Alan's attention to me.

The red headed man looked at me with an expression revealing how uncertain he was. He looked tense, like a cornered animal. It was not a good omen for our side when our chief speaker looked like he was ready to run away. I walked up to him and gave what I hoped was a soulful gaze. "Mr. Barnes, you don't look well. Are you alright?"

He flinched away slightly after meeting my gaze. Looking at my father didn't make things much better for him. If I let Alan's emotions spiral out of control, he'll become a liability. "I know you're worried about her. For the first few months, so was I. Now…it has to stop before she does something she can't come back from." I was laying it on a bit thick, but I only needed him to buy into my bullshit. "I can't help her. I think trying would only make things worse. I'm sorry, Mr. Barnes. I wish I knew how it happened, but, I-I've become a bad influence on her. Maybe it's something I did or didn't do, but I don't want to be the reason she's being a bad person anymore. Emma isn't supposed to be a bad person." I nearly scoffed at my own words. I was well past the point of caring about her.

Emma took so much from me. Things material, immaterial, and things that were both. I wanted to take away everything that made her who she became and important to who she was. That meant taking away Sophia, Madison, and all her sycophants. After all, who would an overprotective and willfully blind father think of as the bad ones: his daughter, someone he used to see as a daughter and was blaming herself, or the friends Emma made around the time she became a bitch. It was time for my coup de grâce. "She just keeps getting worse the longer I'm around her. What happens if I make her so bad, she can't get better. Everyone will hate her. It's better for all of us if I just drop out." I let some tears form at the corner of my eyes. It took the second set falling for Alan to lunge forward and pull me into a hug.

"No Taylor, this was never your fault. I couldn't be there when she needed me most, and I let someone else take my place. It's their fault." A quick look at my father revealed his expression to be more flabbergasted than any I've seen before then.

"If you say so Mr. Barnes." I finished the display with a deep breath. "I-I think I'm ready." It took him a few seconds to let me go.

On the way to the school building, Dad and I managed to separate ourselves from Alan enough for a private conversation. "Taylor, what was that?"

"Revenge. Maybe it will work, maybe it won't." Judging by his expression, it wasn't good enough of an explanation for him. "Let's just say I don't expect therapy to be something she'll enjoy."

The Halls of Winslow were sparsely populated by small groups of gang members. They only paid us enough mind to show their displeasure at the two adults accompanying me. Triggering the active component of my Misdirection Skill proved this. Everyone who would care about my existence was safely contained in their classrooms. Nothing was going to get in my way. Murphy must have been watching.

 **Your Party Member is under attack.**

Dad and I both froze and exchanged worried glances. I activated Misdirection again and made sure no one was paying me any attention before turning on Voice Chat for both members so dad could hear my whispering. A quick glance revealed Kendra suffering under a Condition, but her Health and Stamina were fine. "Kendra, you have a Charmed Condition. What's wrong? Are you okay?" She didn't respond immediately, leaving me feeling trapped. I took advantage of my logical mindset and forced myself to remember that she was at Arcadia, where the Wards, Panacea, and Glory Girl attended. It didn't help when Charmed was replaced by a Fearful Condition.

My anxiety spiked for a few seconds when her Health plummeted and she acquired the Conditions Unconscious, Moderate Concussion, and Dislocated Right Shoulder. "Dad, don't freak out, but I have to check on her." I attracted Alan's attention and stopped speaking under my breath. "Mr. Barnes. I'm sorry, I-I cant. I don't want to be here anymore." I turned and walked away at a brisk pace. "Keep me updated. I need to check on her," I whispered to Dad.

 _"Ok,"_ I heard him whisper back before saying, _"I think she just needs her space. The sooner we can make sure she never has to come back to this school again, the better. Don't worry, she's strong…just like her mother."_

I forged ahead while planning how best to reach Kendra as quickly as possible. Fate seemed to have other ideas because the bell rang and the halls were quickly filled by a steady stream of students. In seconds, I noticed the harpies calling Emma their queen flapping their gums and flitting about. By the time I thought to escape via defenestration, I was already surrounded. At leastle could admire their coordination. They screeched out insults and accusations, many of which were nonsensical or contradictory. Most referenced my body odor for obvious reasons. It didn't matter to them what they said. All that mattered was buying enough time for their queen to arrive. I couldn't figure out what to do, at least not without undermining my goals. I couldn't do anything that could be considered an attack. That didn't mean I had to keep up my passive act. I removed my hood, squared my shoulders, and glared at the crowd. That's when Emma showed up. "Well, well, well. Look what the garbage truck dragged in." Everyone had gone quiet to give Emma her shot.

I Observed her, caring only about her biography.

 _Emma Barnes, formerly the best friend of The Gamer, a close encounter with the ABB left her traumatized and primed for a new ideology in which the strong prey upon the weak. Emma chose to prey upon her friend to prove she was strong enough to survive her near-ordeal._

I finally knew why, and it was such a hollow victory. I was far past caring about what happened to her. I was past caring about her bullshit. "You're weak." Those two words struck her like the wrath of God. I stepped forward then gently moved her aside. I was already jogging down the corridor by time any of them thought to respond. Sure, I would have loved to tear into her, but I had other priorities.

I checked Kendra's location on the Map, which was still Arcadia. I didn't know how long that would last, so time was of the essence. After a quick scan, I took notice of the bikes lined up at the door. I used Observe to identify a bike belonging to a gangster.

 **Dominic's Trek Fuel EX 8:**

 **SP:** 257/300

 _A 120mm mountain bike with a dual air chamber equipped DRCV shock. Boosts movement speed by 58%. Reduces speed penalties by 50% on uneven terrain._

I tore apart the chains holding it in place, then hid the evidence in my Inventory and rode away before any of my pursuers could catch up. "So we have to wait to be let in?" I heard my dad say as I was climbing aboard 'my' ride.

"Remember dad. We also want to make sure they didn't put any lies on my permanent record. And don't let Blackwell be in charge." I started peddling south at an impressive speed. I brought up my Inventory then reapplied my Gameboy disguise. I didn't get far before I received a new Skill.

 **A new skill has been created through repeated action. Due to balanced peddling, the Skill Cyclist has been created.**

I decided to Observe the Skill.

 **Cyclist: (Passive)(1/100)** 6%

 _Increases the movement speed boost from any bicycle by (SL×2)%._

 _"Alan, do you think we should just barge in there?"_ I heard my dad whisper.

"That sounds like a good idea. I'm going to Swap to Armsmaster's Party and t…" Exactly when I finished saying those words, I was swapped over to the Lawnmower Party. I filed the technique away then focused on what mattered. "Armsmaster, I have a situation. My friend has been injured. She was still at Arcadia the last time I checked."

 _"Level, please repeat. Are you claiming that a minor has been injured during school hours. Do you have reason to suspect foul play? Do you have reason to suspect parahuman involvement?"_

 **ENDR+1=44** (96-EXP)

 **Cyclist is Level 2.**

"Yes to both. I was alerted to Kendra being under attack. When I looked, I saw her Condition was Charmed. Charmed later became Fearful, then she was Concussed and knocked Unconscious. Her shoulder is dislocated too."

He seemed to go into deep thought for a minute. _"And you're_ certain _events transpired exactly as you've stated?"_

The sudden shift away from his normal monotone indicated that he knew something and had not intentional of telling me. "Yes. Now, what are you hiding from me?"

It took more time for me to get a response from someone I wasn't expecting to answer me. _"Sounds like Glory Girl to me," Leet_ chimed in. _"A love me/fear me power followed by taking a big hit? That sounds exactly like the blond bitch"_

While I included them intentionally, I didn't think Uber or Leet would tell me anything useful. I switched off my link to Armsmaster. "You're sure about this?"

 _"Yep. Back when me and my buddy set up in the Bay, I built a powers analyzer. It's busted, but we know what most of the capes in this city are really capable of," Leet_ said with a bragging tone.

Uber jumped in next. _"Glory Girl's power involves an awe aura that affects everyone, not a fear aura only affecting 'bad guys.' The PHO page on her is mostly bullshit."_

 _"They try to say her power makes good people feel good, but it only makes them think the sun shines out of Glory Girl's ass."_

In the time it took for them to confirm my suspicions towards Armsmaster, he finished finished formulating his response. _"Level, I understand your concern for your friend, but we have this under control. Please return to what you were doing, or, if you feel the need to make productive use of your time, come to the PRT so we can proceed with your Wards application."_

Yeah, that wasn't going to fly. "So you're not going to tell me a hero fucked up or who it was? Don't bother answering me, I've already figured out what it is."

 _"Level, I hope you don't plan on accusing a hero of assaulting a minor. That's a very serious accusation,"_ he said gruffly

"Cut the bullshit. It's Glory Girl, isn't it?"

 _"Explain your reasoning."_

I snorted. "Saturday night, around 5:30 p.m., I was mistaken for a mugger and attacked by Glory Girl. A glancing blow from her dealt over five hundred damage. I was able to point out her mistake and get away, especially after Kendra called Glory Girl on her cell phone. Kendra might have threatened to cut off all Glory Girl's hair if she attacked me again." I heard whistling, snickering, and air hissing through teeth from Uber, Leet, and Armsmaster respectively. "I don't know what happened between them today," I huffed, "but I intend to find out."

 **Ventriloquism is Level 11.**

 **Cyclist is Level 3.**

 _"Level, there's no need to act rashly. If you have her exact location, I can contact Gallant and direct him to her."_

I wondered why Gallant was the only available Ward, but it wasn't important. "Fine, so long as he lives up to his name. First I need to Swap to Gamers Convention Party." The Party changed just as I hoped it would.

 _"…do you mean misplaced!"_ I heard my dad practically screaming. _"These are my daughter's medical records, and you're saying that you_ misplaced _them! What kind of school are you running here?!"_

"Dad, calm down. Just get me out of there. I'm sure the PRT can help us with the rest tomorrow." I looked at the Map then Swapped back to Lawnmower. "She's been moved: the closest alley northwest from Arcadia.

 _"Understood. I will direct Gallant to her approximate location."_ It was like he was doing his best to ignore how he tried to keep me in the dark. That was fine with me for the moment.

"Wouldn't it be easier to add him to the party?" It was already annoying having to Swap between different Parties.

 _"I'm under direct orders to discourage you from adding new Members to any Parties. I will have to order Gallant to refuse your invitation."_ And there was little doubt what Gallant would do then.

I groaned a little. "Annoying, but fine."

He carried on as if my opinion on things wasn't of consequence. _"I will be Muted while contacting Gallant. Ping me if there is an emergency or a change to your friend's location."_ Before I could ask what he meant, his Voice Chat box was replaced with Ping. I Observed it and read the contents.

 **Ping:**

 _Allows any Party Member to request another Party Member to turn off Mute. A Party Member can Ping each other Party Member once an hour._

 **Cyclist is Level 4.**

With Armsmaster Muted, it was a good chance to speak to the duo. "Thanks for the tip guys."

Leet chuckled. _"Helping GG get shafted makes it worth it. She's broken more of my best stuff than anyone else. Kudos on the bluff by the way."_

"Yeah, I figured you wouldn't want that getting out." I smirked as an idea hit me. "Can you guys tell me what you know?"

 _"Depends. What will you say if someone asks how you know that kind of shit?"_ Apparently Leet was worried about how the PRT would respond.

"I'd say Observe and/or Intuition are bullshit and claim to have done my research. How are things on your end?"

 _"Armsmaster just told us about some tribunal happening tonight,"_ Uber added.

 _"The white hats have to figure out how to handle us or something like that. We also think you can use strategy games to work on your Wisdom. You can try online chess or Go, but I doubt they'll be better than top-tier Starcraft."_

"That last one sounds like something I'll need a decent computer and connection for. What's Go?"

Uber was the one who answered me. _"Go's an Asian strategy game, maybe from Japan. Top-tier games are supposed to be freakishly long and complicated."_

"That makes sense, and if it makes sense, there's a good chance it'll work. Are there any breakthroughs for Intuition?" They gave me a simultaneous 'nope.'

 _"It's like some kind of unholy mashup of Charisma and Luck, without the whole fate smiling down on you bullshit,"_ Leet said in aggravation.

 _"Reads like something that should be mixed in with Wisdom, but it's not. No game has ever used it before, so we're stumped."_

"Thanks anyways. I'm going to Swap to my dad's Party real quick.

My brow furrowed when the Swap wasn't made as expected. _"You do that,"_ Leet said.

"Swap to Gamer's Conference Party." That confirmed I had to say the Party Name or the leader's name to make a Swap. I checked Kendra's location, which was where I last saw her. Her Moderate Concussion was down to Mild, her shoulder was healed, and Unconscious was replaced with Sedated. Her Health was at 160 and grayed out. "Hey Dad."

 _"Hey Taylor, is everything okay?" he whispered._

"Yeah Dad. I just want to know how things went."

 _"Taylor,"_ he said in exasperation. _"Okay. Give me time to think."_ He took over five seconds to do so. _"Well, Blackwell is a…unpleasant, but we managma to get most of what we wanted,"_ he said.

"Including copies of the paperwork that will allow me to drop out?"

 _"Yes."_

"Okay. Were there any surprises, other than my medical records being misplaced?"

 _"Well, Emma was waiting for us outside of the principal's office. She tried to say you bullied her, but Alan didn't buy it. I overheard a bit about him telling somebody about what Sophia has really been up to, so that's good, I think."_

 **Cyclist is Level 5.**

 **DEXT+1=38** (84-EXP)

 **Quest: Reeducation** (Success)

 _You have decided it was time to move on from Winslow High and leave your past behind. Finalize your plans to do so before school begins next week._

 **Success:** _+500-EXP_

 **Failure:** _Continued enrollment in Winslow._

( **Bonus** +250-EXP: _aquire legal assistance._ )

( **Bonus+250-EXP:** _arrange punishment of tormenters._ )

 **Level+1=15**

I had forgotten about the Quest in the midst of the small crisis, so earning 834 EXP and a Level was a pleasant surprise. "Thanks dad. I'm going to change Parties again. Can you call me on Kendra's phone if she is moved?" I immediately pulled out Kendra's phone, pocketed it, Swapped Parties, then Pinged Armsmaster.

He unmuted himself near instantly. _"Level, it will be for the best if you distance yourself from this incident."_

"The best for who? Not long ago, you tried to hide what happened from me."

 _"Level, I am ordering you to stand down."_

I scoffed. "Sorry Armsmaster, but you can't give me any orders. Unless you can give me a good reason to abandon my friend, I refuse to do as you ask."

Armsmaster took a few seconds to respond. _"We have a situation with two known and non-hostile parahumans accusing each other of a serious crime. Your testimony paints Glory Girl as volatile and likely to respond poorly to your presence. Glory Girl's testimony brings the nature of your abilities into question."_

I interrupted him with a loud sigh. "Long story short, Glory Girl has mistaken my Party System for some variety of Master power, so you are trying to figure out a solution that won't turn this into even more of a clusterfuck." I finally had all the information I wanted, but I still had to use my knowledge to figure out a path to the best results. "What if I try to talk her down, and if that doesn't work, I surrender to her? It would get her to drop her guard and bring both of us under your roof." I felt happy with my solution until I remembered another problem. "But we'll have to be discreet in case unrelated parties are keeping watch."

 **WSDM+1=23** (54-EXP)

 _"Conversely,"_ Uber started saying, _"you can kick her ass."_

 _"We can even tell you how to do it."_ He chuckled darkly and hissed his next words to me. _"Think of the Experience young one."_ That was very tempting. I decided to change my mind if the situation fits.

 _"That's…an unorthodox solution. Most people would take offense to being accused of a crime by the person they believe to be the true perpetrator."_

I felt my emotions become more intense from the sore spot he unknowingly poked. "I have a lot of experience with that particular problem. For three semesters, I was tormented by my former best friend. I tried telling the teachers and the principal, and I tried to apply for a transfer. The first got me labeled as the creepy loner jealous of the pretty girls and the second," I took a second to scoff, "the receptionist didn't hesitate to put it through the shredder. I likely wouldn't have my powers if anyone at school ever bothered to do their fucking jobs. I'll be understandably upset if history repeats itself without a _very_ good reason." It may have not been heroic, but a thinly veiled threat felt like the right thing to do there. I didn't know what exactly I would do if I got shafted, but I knew it would include causing the PRT a mountain of headaches.

Armsmaster was silent long enough for Kendra's location to be just around the corner. I could still change my mind, but I didn't want to. The first reason I came up with was to test the PRT. If they failed, if they proved to be just as bad as the Winslow staff, they'd regret it. "I'm going in. Does Gallant know I'm friendly?"

He sighed. _"That won't be necessary."_ The way he said that made it clear he wasn't going to elaborate. _"Be advised: Glory Girl has left the area."_

My eyes snapped to the sky, but I didn't see any blond bombshells barreling down at me. "Thanks for the warning," I said with a hint of sarcasm. "Is there anything else I need to be aware of?"

 **Cyclist is Level 6.**

 _"Yes. If you identify Gallant's civilian identity then later choose not to join the Wards, he will be told your identity."_

That sounded fair enough. "Fantastic. Here goes nothing." I threw the bike into my Inventory, turned off the Chat, then crossed the threshold.

 _New Wave Healer_

 _? Amy Dallon/?/Panacea_

 _?_

She was a very mousy looking girl with too many freckles and brown hair that was the kind of frizzy it would take me a week of negligence to replicate. I wondered why a healer was over Level 75 and why she had a third identity, but those were questions I could answer by raising my own Level.

 _Wards Blaster_

 _LV: 42 Dean Stansfield/Gallant_

 _Comprehension Host_

Dean practically exuded wealth and class. Tall, dark coifed hair, fit, and very handsome. I Observed him.

 **Observe is Level 6.**

 **Dean Stansfield/Gallant: LV: 12+30**

 **Condition:** Combative; Mild Charm Addiction

 **Allegiances:** PRT; Protectorate; Wards; Brockton Bay

 **(Skills List)**

 **HP:** 667/690

 **SP:** 153/270

 **MP:** N/A

 **VIGR:** 9

 **ENDR:** 27

 **DEXT:** 11

 **INTL:** 23+(200)

 **WSDM:** [12-6]

 **INTU:** 18+(1000)

 _After purchasing his powers through the shadow organization Cauldron, Dean Stansfield decided to put his newly acquired powers to use serving as a hero. He is constantly juggling his schoolwork, business training, hero work, acting as the Wards' psychiatrist, and worrying about how his team would react to the truth._

That was above and beyond anything I expected to learn about any of my future teammates. Glory Girl's aura was addictive, the son of one of the few men keeping the Dockworkers afloat was a Ward, the Cauldron rumors I saw online were confirmed, and powers could be bought. Had I been anyone else, it would have taken hours to process it all. I was back in the moment within seconds.

That still left me with one wary parahuman, another curious one, and an unconscious friend. I didn't have a good idea of what to do first, so I decided to silently offer Amy Dallon the first move. She picked up on my offer in seconds. "Are you the cape from Saturday night?" I nodded. "How did you find us and what do you want?"

I couldn't tell her what my powers were because I knew she'd think I'm lying unless I add her to a Party. That wasn't an option thanks to Armsmaster's ban, so I was limited in n what I could explain. "My powers allow me to track the location and Condition of my allies. What I want is to explain myself and make sure something like this does not happen again," I said while taking in her expression, "hopefully without making this into a bigger mess."

I was no stranger to receiving accusatory looks, but Amy's eyes had a focus the others lacked. She looked as if the truth actually mattered to her, but I doubted she would accept it very easily. "And what _else_ does your power do?"

"It alerts everyone in a selected group if anyone else is attacked and allows long ranged communication. My power requires informed consent and members can break it off at will. I think the first two are how Glory Girl mistook my abilities for a Master effect."

Her piercing gaze turned into a thoughtful expression then suspicious, but I could see doubt starting to form. "Something doesn't add up."

She didn't elaborate, and it looked like she didn't know how to. "That tends to happen when two people are telling two different sides of a story." Disguising the motion as a natural gesture, I turned Voice Chat on for Armsmaster and the other two just in case. "Here's what I think happened from our combined perspectives. While looking for a criminal Saturday night, she spotted me Sprinting home and either misidentified me or had no description to go on. She tried to catch me by surprise, and landed a glancing blow that was enough to trigger an alert to Kendra. Kendra heard me identify Glory Girl as my assailant, and took it upon herself to call Glory Girl and threaten to cut her hair off if it happened again. I suspect Glory Girl became suspicious of how Kendra became aware of our encounter and erroneously assumed Kendra was Mastered. This idea was allowed to stew for two days. Over half an hour ago, Victoria confronted Kendra somewhere isolated. My powers interpreted Victoria's awe inspiring aura as an attack. I warned Kendra of this, but I think it only made things worse. When Kendra was injured, I dropped what I was doing and informed Armsmaster of everything I knew. That's as far as I can get." As Amy and Dean processed the info dump, I clicked Armsmaster's Voice Chat off then whispered to the other two. "Don't let Armsmaster know I told you guys that, okay."

Still speaking quietly, I verbally turned off their Chat then turned Armsmaster's back on. _"Our young Padawan is learning Master Uber."_

 _"Learning well she is, Master Leet."_ I nearly shook my head at their idiocy.

 _"We will have to talk about operational security,"_ I nearly snorted at Armsmaster's irony, _"but for now, I want you and Gallant to do what you can to bring Panacea and the victim in for questioning."_

I blinked and idly noticed a look of resignation on Dean's face. "No, Armsmaster." Everyone else blinked, including Armsmaster I bet. "With all due respect, what the hell are you thinking? You want to bring a _concussed minor_ in for questioning, likely without getting consent from her or her parents until after you already have her in custody. I don't know how it sounds to you, but I think it's morally questionable, if not illegal."

 _"Level, I understand you lack experience with these situations and PRT protocol, but your friend needs to be brought in for questioning and at least 24 hours of observation. This is standard procedure for when a civilian has an encounter with a hostile Master rated cape. That doesn't even cover how this may destroy relations with New Wave. We need all the facts before we accuse a well known and popular hero of villainy."_ It took me a long second to comprehend what he said. _"You need to stop letting your emotions cloud your judgement."_

That was surprising enough to get me to stop pacing, an action I hadn't noticed myself doing in the first place. I was ready to impress upon him how rehearsed he sounded, but Dean jumped in before I could get a word out. "Sir, may I suggest we wake Kendra up first…take this one step at a time?" He was nervous, which made perfect sense with him taking my side of the argument.

It was only right I back him up. "He's right. We shouldn't be wasting time spouting rote arguments. I only want to prioritize Kendra's wellbeing. Letting Panacea decide if she's well enough is good enough for me." I turned my attention to Amy, who looked like she was trying to stay calm and was mostly succeeding. "Will it be a problem to wake Kendra?"

She played with the hem of her shirt and refused to look directly at me. "What will happen?"

It didn't take much thinking to realize what she meant. "I don't know. My personal experience in these kinds of situations involves being made out to be the villain despite being the victim. Maybe history will repeat itself. Maybe only the ones who did something wrong will have to face the consequences of their actions, without having their lives ruined unnecessarily. That'd be a miracle, but we're getting sidetracked," I said gesturing towards Kendra. "Would you please?"

When Amy gave me a hesitant nod, I Observed Kendra and watched her Sedated Condition vanish seconds after Amy touched her. Her eyes fluttered open and slowly focused on the other girl looking down on her. Grogginess shifted to recognition then to fear. Amy was caught by complete surprise when Kendra shoved her off and scuttled to a wall. I was at her side as quickly as my legs could take me. "Kendra! Calm down! I'm right here!"

Her eyes glazed over me as she scanned the area for some unseen threat, paying special attention to the sky. I removed my scarf and forced her to look at me. I watched as her cloudy gaze sharpened. "Taylor?" she said after four shaky breaths.

I nodded back. "Yeah, it's me. Everything's ok." She didn't respond and her only movement came from her sniffling. I took the initiative by pulling her into a hug. She barely cried as I stroked her ebony hair, timing each stroke with her exhales until I had control. I used that control to guide her into replicating my Restorative Breathing Skill.

 **INTU+1=26** (60-EXP)

 **Restorative Breathing is Level 17.**

"It's okay, just focus on your breathing. Don't control it. The only thing you need to think about are the words in and out." I checked her Observe window and noted her Panicked Condition. I continued soothing her until it vanished.

"Okay," Dean and I said simultaneously. We shared a look, during which he silently convince me to go first. I agreed with a nod. "Kendra, do you remember what happened between you and Victoria?" She tensed. "You don't have to tell us everything. Just say yes or no. Do you remember?" She nodded into my chest. "Try not to move your head too much. Did Victoria attack you?"

"Yeah…no, I…"

"You're not sure if what she did counts as attacking you?"

"Yeah, that."

"Do you think it was an accident?"

"I don't think she did it on purpose."

"Okay then." It was time to bite the metaphorical bullet. "Armsmaster told me he wants me to bring you in for questioning. I don't want to do that unless you're okay with it."

"Will it be like an interrogation?" she asked with a sudden lack of hesitation.

"Not exactly. They want to hold you for 24 hours and ask you some questions about what happened today."

I could see her thinking hard enough to hurt herself a little. "So I'm being not interrogated and not arrested," she stated in understanding. "Cool."

I blinked. "Cool?"

"Yep. I always wanted to know what it was like to be interrogated. It's on my bucket list."

"Being interrogated is on your bucket list?" I deadpanned. "Why is being interrogated on your bucket list? Why do you _have_ a bucket list?" I asked followed by a short pause. "It's not even a real interrogation."

"Because they can't prove anything, because why not, and this is the next best thing." I could practically see her self-satisfied grin in my mind's eye. But the chuckling I could hear from the peanut gallery wasn't imaginary in the slightest. When I looked, Amy appeared abashed while Dean looked like he was fighting a smirk.

I sighed then got interrupted by Armsmaster before I could say anything. _"If your friend has no issues with being put under observation, then you have no reason to be belligerent."_

He was really starting to get on my nerves, to the point of me taking a second to consider calling him Tin Man. "Not yet. We're still waiting for Panacea to give the all clear, and I want to keep her identity concealed if this ends up happening." I ignored the pleading look Kendra was giving Amy and focused on the healer.

The stress of the last hour was building up fast for her, making me feel sympathetic. "Yeah, she can answer some questions, but none of it will be any good in court, even if they didn't need parental consent. The law's pretty clear on testimonies made when suffering from a head injury."

"You seem to be taking this pretty well all things considered." Amy didn't have the benefits of Gamer's Mind after all.

Amy deflated. "Because we fucked up and got caught red-handed. This is the second time Vicki screwed up, that I know about. It could have been the third if she found the guy she was really looking for Saturday night. I should've nipped this in the bud _before_ someone innocent got hurt." She shook her head morosely. "Too late now."

"Yeah, it is." I scanned the alley and happily noted that no one had noticed our little gathering so far. "Okay. How do we get to the PRT without linking her to my cape identity? I don't want any surprises snaking up on her." I let my alternative choice in words indicate exactly what kind of surprises I was wary of.

 _"Gallant can guide you to a secret underground entrance. I can pass you a standard domino mask through the inventory to disguise her identity.?"_

"Kendra's identity and mine aren't the only ones at risk here."

He took a second to reply, giving Dean a chance to chip in first. "Actually, Kendra already knows who I am, and I guess you do too."

"Yep; and Dean knew I knew way back in October."

I glanced between the two with a mild feeling of surprise. "And that hasn't caused any problems?"

Dean shook his head. "Participants in the Wards Decoy Program have to sign Non-Disclosure forms in case they do stumble into a Ward's identity. Kendra did a little more than stumble."

 _"Your friend isn't the first student to figure out a Ward's identity, and she won't be the last. So far, her knowledge has been a non-issue, despite her initial infractions."_

Well, that was one problem rendered moot.

"Okay. While we're at it, we should take this chance to sign me up for the kids club. I don't want my dad coming to the PRT. Can I Claim the paperwork and let dad work on it later today." One of the many great things about my power is that the terminology made for good codewords. Claiming, for example, fit in normal conversation and was uncommon enough for the well informed to pick up on it's true meaning. Claiming was the system that gave every Member control over what they put in the Inventory by making those Items invisible to untrusted Members and inaccessible to everyone. (I'd still have to go into someone's Status Page to see their Claimed Items.)

Claimed Items could also be Gifted, which was what I was asking Armsmaster to do.

 _"The Director and I agreed on that course of action earlier today. I was waiting for a good moment to bring it up."_

 **Gift:** _Wards Application Forms_

 **Gift:** _Wards Non-Disclosure Forms_

 **Gift:** _Protectorate Rules and Regulations_

 **Gift:** _Wards Code of Conduct_

 **Gift:** _PRT Protocol and Procedures_

 **Gift:** _Parahuman PR: A how to Guide_

 **Gift:** _Blank Domino Mask_

 **Gift:** _Gallant's Power Armor_

 **Gift:** _Gallant's Under-Suit_

My eyebrows rose as high as they could go. "That's quite a lot of trust you're giving me." He remained silent, which made sense when what he wanted me to do was obvious. We were still alone, but I decided it would be prudent to set up somewhere more secluded. "Follow me guys." I turned three corners until I found a spot that was sufficiently isolated and had Accepted all of the Items. I turned back to the others and noted how Dean was aware of how no windows were in clear view. "I will now perform a magic trick!" I exclaimed in the way Uber would then pulled Gallant's armor out of my Inventory without further preamble. The gobsmacked expressions on both parahumans' faces made the short act completely worth it. I set the heavy suit against the brick wall and draped the under-suit over it. "Come on. Let's keep watch while Dean slips into something more formal." I took a few steps away but noticed one person not following. "Kendra, what are you doing?"

"I'm keeping watch," she stated as a matter of fact.

I sighed when I saw Amy and Dean being amused by Kendra's antics. "We're supposed to be watching for interlopers, not being voyeurs."

"Having a concussion impairs judgement, right?" she asked rhetorically. "Concussion me wants to see what Dean suiting up looks like."

She knew what she was doing and still managed to make herself seem innocent of any wrongdoing. I picked her up bridal style, triggering a temporary Dizzy Condition; then carried her around the corner. "If you can come up with reasoning like that, then you're cognizant enough to know why what you were doing was wrong." I saw Armsmaster Mute himself.

Our behavior proved to be a little much for the third girl, who started laughing then. "When did you two start dating?"

"We're not…"

"Saturday. We ate lunch, went clothes shopping, beat up a mugger, then played a special game in my room."

My mouth closed with a click. From her intense glee, I knew Amy realized what I was going to say. I glared at my cargo. "Okay, now you're just fucking with me."

She put a finger over where my lips and shushed me. "Not until after the third date." I glared at her even harder. "Save the bedroom eyes for the bedroom."

"If you didn't have a concussion, I'd drop you." She grinned at me while Amy doubled over from laughter.

I watched the spectacle until she finally regained her sense of self-control. "Well, if I needed proof you're not some evil Master, that should do it." And as soon as she spoke those words, her mood plummeted again. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. This isn't your fault."

Amy only shook her head vigorously. "I let Vicki talk me into this, trying to cover up how she messed up. We were planning on painting you in the worst light we could before Dean showed up. It was everything New Wave was supposed to stand against. Our team has been barely hanging on. This could be what makes us fall."

It was worse than she thought. Once the addictive nature of Glory Girl's power is inevitably revealed, I doubted New Wave would make it through intact. "Don't worry Pan-pan, Level won't let that happen."

Amy glared at Kendra for the nickname while I glared at her for making that kind of decision for me. She remained completely oblivious to our irritation, so I voiced my opinion. "When did it become my job to clean up after other people's messes?"

 **Quest: Wave Breaker** (Ongoing)

 _New Wave's golden child has injured an innocent civilian, drawing negative attention to the group. Ensure New Wave survives Glory Girl's blunder. [Alternatively: use what you know to break New Wave apart.]_ ( **Time Limit:** _6 hours_ )

 **Success:** _+1,000-EXP, Emily Piggot's disapproval, Positive relations with New Wave. [+750-EXP, Emily Piggot's approval, Negative relations with New Wave.]_

 **Failure:** _Emily Piggot's disapproval, Negative relations with New Wave._

I wondered what it meant when my power granted me greater rewards for the course of action I'd prefer to take. I likely would've thought more about it if the rewards were the same, but I'd like to think of me making the same choice regardless. "I'll Accept your reQuest," I said with my cadence changing to alert Kendra of what happened. "I know the Director really wants me on board, so I'm willing to negotiate her out of anything extreme. If the worst happens, I can threaten to stay independent or join New Wave."

"Or you could go back to my plan," Kendra added suddenly.

"Your plan?" Amy asked her with a raised eyebrow.

I covered Kendra's mouth with my hand and chuckled. "Don't mind her. That's just the concussion talking."

We were saved from making Amy even more suspicious by a heavy thump from behind us. "Sorry for the holdup everyone. Full body armor is a chore to put on no matter how well designed it is." I turned towards him and beheld a true modern knight. His armor shined under the afternoon sun while electric blue light radiated from seams on his chest and his visor. "I also couldn't help but overhear how you're willing to help despite having every reason not to." His voice was a little different too, but not unrecognizable.

"It's no problem. Ever since I got my powers, holding onto any kind of grudge hasn't been easy." That was true enough. Getting revenge on Emma was a matter of convenience and opportunity. The revenge itself was geared towards putting an end to the bullying, for myself and anyone else on her bad side. How could I do any worse for someone I had no bad history with.

"Either way, thanks. I'm worried about Victoria, and your forgiveness will go a long way towards helping her."

"I…I don't care, so long as she stays away from me." The conversation ended instantly. For a moment, we let ourselves forget who had the most reason to see Victoria get punished.

"Come-on everyone. We should get going." I set Kendra on her feet and pulled out the mask and some scarves for her to use. "Let's keep to the side streets. I don't want any undue attention." I took only three steps before Murphy proved to have his eye on me yet again.

 **Danger Sense is Level 4.**

I tried to duck and roll away, but she apparently learned from the last time. Rather than pull off a roll worthy of any gymnast, I was grabbed by my coat and deposited onto a roof two alleys away.

[HP - 73]

"If you know what's good for you, you're going to tell me what your powers are and what you did. Now!"

 _"Level! Report!"_

A deluge of flaming indignation and crystalline focus filled my mind, with righteous fury being born from them. It was Gamer's Mind which ensured I didn't miss what Uber and Leet had to tell me. "Okay Glory Girl. I'll tell you."

** ***** _ **L4+110: 3+450; 10; 12+100; 19; [2]; 7**_ ***

An unfamiliar feeling of nervousness filled Victoria's chest as she thought back on the encounter she had Saturday evening. The part that had her worried was how the mystery cape got Kendra to defend her, and how Kendra did it. Kendra was happy, ditzy, and always friendly with her. Threatening someone wasn't something she would do. Also, contrary to how the joke goes, Victoria Dallon wasn't a blond dumb enough to miss how suddenly Kendra made that call. Either she had some kind of freaky sixth sense or powers were at play.

It was thirty minutes into the lunch hour when Victoria spotted her target skipping alone down the halls. Looking at her, it was freaky how Kendra was able to look so content while alone in a crowd. Sure, they never hung out much except for when she was with Dean, but it was unnatural for such a friendly person's eyes to glaze over so many people. It was as if they didn't exist to her.

When Kendra passed by a stairwell, Victoria made her approach with grace facilitated by her power. "Hey Kendra, can we talk for a minute." She only had time to look at Victoria in confusion before being grabbed. The younger girl had no reason to say no, and if she did, it would only be proof of foul play. After all, there wasn't a single student in the school who wouldn't take a chance to hang out with her. "So Kendra," she started saying halfway up the stairs and while turning to face the much smaller teen, "what was up with Saturday night? Are you alright?"

Kendra tilted her head and looked like she very confused. "Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?"

'Because you're involved with a cape with some kind of telepathy power,' but Victoria couldn't say something like that out loud. The way she was acting, it was as if Kendra didn't remember. Victoria felt the reigns she had on her aura loosen, and decided to let it go. It was perfect for whenever she wanted the flighty girl's attention. "I need you to be serious for a second. If it's something you can't say, give me some kind of signal."

She didn't give a signal, but instead said something a dozen times more worrying. "Status." The unusual word itself was just as bad as the robotic tone she said it with. Even that wasn't quite as jarring as Kendra's face though. If threatening someone was something Kendra wouldn't do, glaring in rage was even more impossible. "No. Leave me alone."

Victoria didn't think for a second before she was floating in Kendra's escape path. "Kendra," she said sternly, "what the hell! This isn't like you."

Kendra had to crane her neck to glare into Victoria's eyes. Her pupils were dilated, her breathing was shallow, and she was sweating. It looked like she was scared, but that didn't make sense. Victoria's power was supposed to make people adore her if they already liked her, and fear her if they had reason to be afraid. It couldn't change what a person felt about her, which was how they could get it classified as a Shaker power.

"Stop…it," she panted out. The glare got even more abnormally fierce.

It had to be that cape. He…she, was somehow forcing her to fake being scared, through something like Valefore or Heartbreaker's powers. They (Victoria decided to stick to gender neutral pronouns), must have been doing it for a reason. "No. Not until you let her go." She ramped her aura up to full blast. Feeling some extra adoration never hurt anyone, and the other cape didn't like it.

Kendra froze with a finger about to poke the air. Victoria ignored that, ignored her tears, ignored her trembling and kept up the pressure. Only when Kendra's skin turned ashen did Victoria notice her lack of breathing. She shut off her power and watched as Kendra started falling forward before transitioning into a dash. Victoria tried to bar her path, but was too slow. She watched helplessly as Kendra spun out of control and hit the edge of the first step with the back of her head. "Fuck!" Glory Girl floated over to check on her. "Kendra!" She was utterly still and clearly unconscious.

It was only a matter of time before someone came along and got the wrong idea. Kendra had to be moved, which would normally be a bad idea for a head injury. Even with one of the world's best healers in the city, something like that couldn't simply be written off. But if she went to the school nurse, questions would be asked.

First Victoria had to find her sister, explain what happened, and get a diagnosis. Carefully, she moved Kendra to a corner then started flying around the halls in search of the slightly younger Dallon. Nobody paid her any special attention, both because her aura was reigned in again and because the sight of Victoria flying around the halls was not unusual. It didn't take long to find the brown bush that could be called hair if someone was feeling generous. "Amy!"

There must have been some urgency in her voice or expression, because Amy picked up on it instantly. "What happened?" There was no asking 'what is it this time' or 'what did you do' in exasperation. Her tone was more like a stern doctor.

She really needed to stop spending her afternoons at the hospital.

"No time. This way." Victoria tried to speak in a tone much duller than she was used to. It seemed to work as nobody paid attention to the two capes moving briskly through the halls. It took less than a minute to lead Amy back to where she left Kendra.

"What did you do!" There it was: the accusation. This one hurt more than the last two times.

"It's not my fault." Victoria was sure of that much. No matter how she thought about it, it didn't make sense for Kendra to try to run of her own volition. "She…charged. I tried not to hurt her, but she caught me off guard."

"I doubt anyone is going to care whose fault it is if this gets out. What you did to those thugs was a mess. This is a nightmare." While chewing her out, Amy put her finger on Kendra's neck. "Dislocated shoulder, concuss…what the hell!"

Victoria's heart-rate spiked. "What? What is it sis?"

She flinched when _Amy_ glared at her. "Did you hit her with your other power too?"

"I," she started saying before switching gears. "What's that got to do with anything?"

Amy's eyes narrowed. "Her blood stream is flooded with adrenaline and cortisol. She must have been terrified. It's exactly like…"

Whatever Amy was going to say was interrupted by the bell. "Fuck! We can't let anyone see this!" Victoria opened the normally out of reach window then floated back down. "We can move her, right?" Amy simply crossed her arms defiantly. "You can't be serious?"

"Can't be serious!?" she hissed. "This is the perfect time to be serious."

Victoria abruptly put her hands on Amy's shoulders. "You can't do this. If people get the wrong idea, New Wave is fucked. At least let me explain first.

Amy sighed while wearing the biggest frown ever. "She can be moved, but you'd better have a very good explanation for this. … I need a second to stabilize her." Just to be sure, Victoria waited five before she gently scooped up the comatose teen and let her sister ride on her back. "Vicki, your power."

"I wasn't using my power." That technically wasn't a lie since it slipped out on it's own. "That's not important right now." Vicki didn't go far before finding an alley to hide in. "Okay, do you remember what I told you about that cape I ran up against Saturday night?"

Amy's frown remained unchanged. "I figured that had something to do with it."

"They Mastered Kendra." Amy's posture shifted slightly, urging her to go on. "You know that capes who can do something to people are resistant to having similar things done to them. When I met that cape, they didn't even _react_ to my power. The only way that happens is if someone is really powerful at emotion manipulation. You said she was afraid. Can you see if there is anything wrong with her head?"

"Vicki, you know I don't do…"

"I'm not asking you to do her brain," Victoria interrupted. "Just look and see if you can find anything that looks like something a cape would do."

"No, just the fear. She doesn't even have a Corona Pollentia." Amy's arms fell to her side. "You're sure about this?"

"Of course! They have to be an emotion manipulator. I even think it's why they didn't like me using my power. It must've caused some kind of interference. Maybe they did that fear thing to fuck with me or maybe it was Kendra breaking free enough to realize what was happening. The only other thing that could make sense is if Kendra suddenly decided to hate me, and there's no way _that_ happened."

Finally, Amy nodded hesitantly. "Okay. That makes sense, but why Kendra?"

The answer came easily. "It's because she's a decoy!" Victoria began floating around due to her mounting excitement from figuring out the mystery. "The cape must've found out about the Wards Decoy Program, and thought it was a good chance to Master a Ward. Even if they missed, they'd still have a spy who's close to the Wards."

As if it never existed, what remained of Amy's dubious expression vanished. "Fuck, that's bad! That's really bad!" Victoria let her power loose for a second to draw Amy's attention then used her expression to express her confusion. The healer picked up on it easily. "Kendra already knows who the Wards are."

"What?!" Victoria was at a loss as she tried to understand the bomb dropped on her. "How?!"

Amy shook her head. "I don't know how she figured it out, but I realized she knew by the way she looked at everyone. She'd always pay more attention to the boys or to us, especially when cape gossip came up."

Victoria blinked. "Wow, you've really been practicing your people watching skills." She shook her head until she was back on topic. "Do you think this is a breach of the rules?"

"Of course it is. Kendra's not a Ward, but she still could be one. If someone went after her because of that possibility, they broke the rules. Using her to get to the actual Wards would make it worse."

Victoria had a beaming smile as she finally saw everything playing out as it should. The hero stumbling across the villain's dastardly plan, stopping the plan, stopping the villain, then putting them away for good. "You know, with the way the Canary trial is going, it should be child's play to fast track this bastard for the Birdcage."

"Yeah." Amy's tone suddenly became dull and lifeless, her meager doubt casting small shadows across Victoria's mood. "But, what if you're wrong?"

With five small words, Victoria's confidence and certainty cracked. Before she could form a good response, Victoria heard a familiar voice calling her name. She released her sister and turned to see her boyfriend running right at them. Out of everyone, he was the last person she wanted to get the wrong idea. She wondered for a second how he managed to find them, but that could be explained away by him using his power to track Amy down. That still left Victoria with explaining how she messed up days after they'd gotten back together again. She was far less prepared to talk to him than she was with Amy, and that was without the seed of doubt her sister planted in her mind. Last, but not least, was the undeniable disappointment on his face. "What happened here?" His tone was firm and gentlemanly, carrying none of the feelings his face expressed.

Victoria did not trust herself to avoid saying the wrong thing. She needed a chance to clear her head without rousing too much suspicion. "Amy can fill you in. I'm going to go on lookout."

Of course she didn't actually do that. She needed to clear her head instead. Since the moment when Kendra's head hit the stairs, Victoria had been in a state of panic. A quick flight would be the perfect cure for what ails her. There was something about flying high in the sky that made her feel better. She didn't bother keeping up with the time, but she didn't waste too much time.

"Ok, game plan time." The first thing she thought back to was her study sessions with Dean. From what she remembered, Masters were usually the second priority and the first to be targeted in parahuman engagements, but they weren't actually involved in an engagement. That meant she should have tried asking personal questions or set up passwords. More important than that was standard eyes-on protocol; which boiled down to 'assume anyone who was out of sight for any amount of time to be compromised.' Suddenly, being able to reach 100mph in windless weather wasn't fast enough. She flew back to where she last saw them, but they were gone. She had no choice but to search the alleys in the surrounding area. If they weren't so narrow, she could have searched them all at a glance. Instead, she had to slowly comb over the area. Good news: they didn't go far. Bad news: they had an extra.

Victoria made her decision fast, diving in and hoping to grab the cape by their coat so she could get them on a roof and away from any minions. She saw the cape diving again, but Glory Girl was ready for it. As soon as they begun their dive, Glory Girl expertly corrected her aim and grabbed them. She dropped the cape on a nearby roof then pushed her power to its limit and willed all of it to concentrate on the villain at her feet. "If you know what's good for you, you're going to tell me what your powers are and what you did. Now!"

The cape relaxed into their position. "Okay Glory Girl," he said in a distinctly male voice, "I'll tell you."

Victoria couldn't decide between a victorious grin or a frown. These situations weren't supposed to be that easy. "You've got five seconds to start talking."

He wasted three. "My power, is getting stronger from beating the bitch out of people like you." Before Victoria could think of attacking, his arm lashed out and gripped her ankle hard enough to stress her forcefield. Victoria's first instinct was to back off and give her defenses time to recharge, but he yanked her down while rising to his feet then pulled her back up. Before she could think to fly away, Victoria took a blow that was far stronger than a high Master rating would imply. Her forcefield barely came up in time to block it.

Falling on the gravel covered roof was painful, but it bought time for her defenses to return. Victoria tried to retreat, but a powerful uppercut broke her shield and took her best means of propulsion with it. She tried to scramble away, buy enough time for her forcefield to return and have a few seconds to gather her thoughts. She never saw the downward strike until she could already feel something drilling into her flesh just left of her navel. Everything went black for a single instant. When she came to, the cape's foot was buried into the gravel as if he barely managed to avoid kicking her by kicking the ground instead. She wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth, so she weakly grabbed his ankle and tried to use her strength to unbalance him like he did her. He didn't budge.

She tried to fly away instead, but nothing happened. She tried everything, but it didn't work. Her powers were gone.

** ***** _ **ANWtP**_ ***

 ** _I think I should go over how melee attack damage works. It's simply her VIGR multiplied by 2-10 depending on how well performed I imagine the attack being. Victoria got hit by a 3× attack with Taylor's VIGR being 39. That's 117, or a 1170 Joule impact concentrated in a small bony fist. I think that's enough for a 3× Critical Damage modifier, so that's 351 damage. Without her forcefield, Victoria has 230 HP. Maybe someone with medical knowledge has a better idea about what that hit would do to a teenage girl._**

 ** _The next chapter should have legal posturing, PR, name choosing, powers testing, and meeting the Wards._**

 ** _Review, Comment, and be cordial everyone._**


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